Kazakhstan’s New Parliament Appoints Tokayev’s Pick, Aibek Dadebay, as Chair

On August 28, Kazakhstan's new parliament convened for the first time and elected its speaker from among the 145 members they had just elected. The choice was unanimous, favoring Aibek Dadebay, the leader of the newly formed Adilet party. Adilet already held the support of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who had nominated Dadebay for the position in advance.

Adilet secured more than 70% of the vote in the election, making it the largest party with 110 seats. Dadebay, a 46-year-old academic and diplomat, has been closely associated with Tokayev since 2013 when Tokayev chaired the Kazakh Senate. Despite being a relatively new party, Adilet quickly gained power after merging with the Amanat party in May, which had dominated Kazakh politics for over 20 years prior to 2022.

This merger allowed Adilet to maintain organizational structures while distancing itself from its historical ties to former President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Dadebay's career has been shaped by his work with Tokayev, and he had previously served as head of the presidential administration before being relieved of that position on May 5.

A few days later, he was elected as chairman of Adilet. After the merger, Adilet won an overwhelming victory in the parliamentary election on August 23, garnering 71.17% of the votes. The OSCE, which oversaw the election, noted that Adilet's victory was due to an unfair advantage that blurred the line between the party and the state.

Tokayev praised Adilet as "an educated, patriotic, and responsible citizen" when advocating for his appointment as speaker. With the new parliament and Dadebay as its speaker, Tokayev now has a pro-presidential body overseeing its work, and he has also appointed Erlan Karin as the new vice president and retained Olzhas Bektenov as prime minister.