Liability for Violations of Election Legislation

In connection with the early termination of the powers of maslikhats at all levels pursuant to Decree No. 1521 of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 12 October 2026, the Central Election Commission has scheduled extraordinary elections of maslikhat deputies for 29 November 2026 (Resolution No. 60/98 dated 13 October 2026).

The procedure and conditions for conducting these elections are governed in detail by the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Elections in the Republic of Kazakhstan”.

Since the announcement of the elections, the Prosecutor’s Office of Aktobe Region has been exercising supreme oversight over compliance with election legislation at all stages of the election campaign.

The most active stage of the campaign — election campaigning — commenced at 6:00 p.m. on 1 November 2026 and will end at midnight on 28 November 2026.

In this regard, we would like to clarify that election campaigning refers to activities aimed at encouraging voters to participate in voting for or against a particular candidate or political party.

At the same time, it should be noted that the legislation contains provisions guaranteeing and protecting the right of candidates, their authorised representatives and political parties to conduct election campaigning, as well as protecting them against the dissemination of false information.

In particular, obstructing candidates for maslikhat deputies, their authorised representatives or political parties in exercising their right to conduct election campaigning entails liability under Article 103 of the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Administrative Offences (hereinafter referred to as the Administrative Offences Code).

The dissemination of knowingly false information about candidates or political parties, as well as other actions discrediting their honour, dignity and business reputation for the purpose of influencing the election results, entails liability under Article 104 of the Administrative Offences Code.

In turn, the provision of services by individuals or legal entities to candidates or political parties in connection with their election activities without their written consent is prohibited and constitutes an administrative offence under Article 118 of the Administrative Offences Code.

Pursuant to paragraph 9 of Article 27 of the aforementioned Constitutional Law, election campaigning accompanied by the free or preferential provision of goods, services or securities to voters, as well as the organisation of lotteries, charitable events, cash payments or promises to provide any of the above, is also prohibited.

Such actions are classified as voter bribery and improper election campaigning, constituting a violation of the established campaigning requirements and entailing liability under paragraph 2 of Article 122 of the Administrative Offences Code.

An exception is made for the free distribution of printed materials, including illustrative materials, badges, flags and pennants specifically produced for the election campaign.

We would particularly like to emphasise that the requirements governing election campaigning through the mass media and online platforms are set out in paragraphs 7 and 7-1 of Article 27 of the same Law. In accordance with these provisions, the mass media are obliged to:

• ensure objective coverage of the election campaign activities of candidates and political parties;
• refrain from publishing campaign materials and other information that knowingly discredits the honour, dignity and business reputation of a candidate or political party;
• provide the above-mentioned persons with an opportunity to publish a free rebuttal in defence of their honour, dignity and business reputation in the next issue of the printed publication, in the same volume, font and location as the disputed statement or material.

Failure to comply with these requirements entails liability under Article 112 of the Administrative Offences Code.

During the election campaign, the following types of administrative offences are also commonly identified:

• Article 113 of the Administrative Offences Code — the production or distribution of anonymous campaign materials that do not contain the mandatory details required under paragraph 5 of Article 28 of the above-mentioned Constitutional Law. All printed campaign materials must indicate the organisation that produced them, the place of printing and print run, the persons who commissioned them, and the source of funding.

These requirements also apply to online platform users if they have produced campaign materials on a contractual basis.

• Article 114 of the Administrative Offences Code — the intentional destruction or damage of campaign materials.
• Article 120 of the Administrative Offences Code — violation of the requirements governing the conduct of public opinion polls related to elections.

In addition, it should be noted that if a court establishes that candidates for maslikhat deputies, their authorised representatives or political parties have disseminated false information discrediting the honour and dignity of another candidate, or have engaged in voter bribery, they may face not only administrative liability.

Under Article 104 of the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Elections in the Republic of Kazakhstan”, such violations may result in the relevant local election commissions cancelling decisions on the registration of the candidates or party lists, or removing an individual from a party list.

It should also be noted that, pursuant to Article 805 of the Administrative Offences Code, the initiation of proceedings in respect of all administrative offences infringing upon electoral rights (Articles 101–126 of the Administrative Offences Code) falls within the exclusive competence of the prosecutor.

At the same time, citizens whose electoral rights have been violated may independently apply directly to the court (subparagraph 4 of paragraph 1 of Article 807 of the Administrative Offences Code).

In such cases, administrative cases are referred directly to the courts without a prosecutor’s ruling, but with the mandatory participation of a prosecutor in proceedings concerning all administrative offences infringing upon electoral rights (Articles 101–126 of the Administrative Offences Code).

Given the particular significance and importance of the elections scheduled for 29 November 2026 for society and the country as a whole, all participants in the electoral campaign must strictly comply with the requirements established by law.

We will take all legal measures provided for by law in response to every identified violation.