Eurasia This Week: January 13, 2022

January 13, 2022

A weekly review of news and analysis of elections in Eurasia, usually posted on Thursdays and occasionally updated throughout the week. For a full electoral calendar and interactive map, click here.

The Abai Theatre in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Photo credit: Wikimedia/Kalpak Travel (CC BY 2.0)

Upcoming Eurasia Elections

Belarus Constitutional Referendum: February 2022 (proposed)

Belarus’s dictator, Alexander Lukashenko, has announced plans to hold a constitutional referendum in February 2022 as a way of extending his time in power (he has been president since 1994 – the first and only president of post-Soviet Belarus). Belarus’s elections and political processes are neither free nor fair.

The country las held a presidential election on August 9, 2020. In a vote widely deemed not free and not fair, Lukashenko declared victory. However, the opposition declared that Svetlana Tikhanovskaya had in fact won. Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians have taken to the streets in protest to demand free and fair elections, even in the face of assault and arrest by security forces. Protests and political defiance continue. More

Claudia Palazzo, Kyiv Post (January 10, 2022): “Putin Constitution” proposals in Belarus Spell Trouble for Ukraine

Past Eurasia Elections

Uzbekistan Presidential Election: October 24, 2021

Uzbekistan held a presidential election on October 24, 2021. Elections in Uzbekistan are neither free nor fair, and political opposition is not able to operate freely in the country. Although some had hoped that President Shavkat Mirziyoyev would face a serious challenger this year, that did not happen. Instead, would-be challengers were either denied ballot access or dropped outMore

Alisher Khamidov, Eurasianet (January 12, 2022): Why Uzbekistan does not fear a “Kazakh Winter”

Reid Standish, RFE/RL (January 6, 2022): For Kazakhstan’s Autocratic Neighbors, Unrest Is A Warning And A Test

Kazakhstan Legislative Elections: January 10, 2021

Kazakhstan held legislative elections for January 10, 2021. The country’s elections take place in the context of an authoritarian system in which critics of the government face harassment and arrest. As such, no genuine opposition has representation in the legislature.

A series of protests that began in January 2022 is currently rocking the country. Russia has sent personnel to intervene. More

Erica Marat and Assel Tutumlu, Foreign Policy (January 11, 2022): Kazakhstan’s Protests Aren’t a Color Revolution

Larry C. Napper, The Conversation (January 11, 2022): Why the US cares about what happens in Kazakhstan – 5 questions answered by former ambassador

Ron Synovitz, RFE/RL (January 7, 2022): ‘We Are Not Terrorists!’: Kazakh Protesters Try To Make Their Voices Heard Amid The Chaos

Yaroslav Trofimov, Wall Street Journal (January 6, 2022): Kazakhstan Unrest and Russia’s Intervention Transform Ties With Moscow

Jim Heintz, AP (January 6, 2022): Dozens of protesters, 12 police dead in Kazakhstan protests

Eurasia Elections Coming Up in 2022 and 2023

Belarus Constitutional Referendum: By February 2022 (proposed)

Russia Regional Elections (some regions): September 2022 (due)

Turkmenistan Parliamentary and Local Elections: March 2023 (due)

Moldova Local Elections: October 2023 (due)

Ukraine Parliamentary Elections: By October 29, 2023 (due)

21votes does not necessarily agree with all of the opinions expressed in the linked articles; rather, our goal is to curate a wide range of voices. Furthermore, none of the individuals or organizations referenced have reviewed 21votes’ content. That is to say, their inclusion should not be taken to imply that they endorse us in any way. More on our approach here.

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