Kazakhstan Concludes Constitutional Referendum Voting, Vote Counting Begins

Voting in Kazakhstan's nationwide constitutional referendum has officially concluded. All domestic polling stations across the country closed at 8:00 PM local time on March 15, 2026, after being open for thirteen hours. Election commissions have now begun the process of counting the ballots.

The referendum day began at 7:00 AM with the opening of 10,388 polling stations. Following the count at local precincts, ballots will be transferred to higher Territorial Election Commissions and then to the Central Referendum Commission (CRC). The final results of the plebiscite are to be announced no later than March 21, 2026.

Voter turnout data showed strong participation throughout the day. By 10:00 AM, over 2.39 million citizens had cast their votes, representing 19.21% of eligible voters. This figure rose to more than 4.67 million (37.54%) by noon.

The referendum was preliminarily deemed valid by 2:00 PM, as participation had already surpassed the required threshold. At that time, over 6.47 million Kazakhstani citizens—51.93% of those on voter lists—had participated.

Turnout continued to climb, reaching over 8 million voters by 4:00 PM and exceeding 8.84 million—more than 70% of eligible voters—by 6:00 PM.

While domestic voting is complete, some polling stations abroad remain open. Of the 71 stations established in 54 countries for overseas citizens, 57 were still operating as of closing time in Kazakhstan.

It is expected that 64 foreign stations will close by midnight Astana time. The final station to conclude voting will be at the Consulate General in San Francisco, which opened on March 15 at 7:00 PM Astana time and is scheduled to close on March 16 at 8:00 AM. A total of approximately 14,230 Kazakhstani citizens abroad were eligible to vote in this referendum.

The proposed amendments represent a significant revision, affecting an estimated 84 percent of the text of the country's fundamental law.