Preliminary results announced by Kazakhstan's Central Election Commission Sunday showed that Nazarbayev's Nur Otan party won all available seats in the polls, while all other parties fell short of the 7% threshold required to enter parliament.
The president, addressing a national organization representing the Central Asian country's various ethnic groups, said: "There are winners and losers at all elections but in the current situation I believe that all Kazakhstan citizens have won. The choice of Kazakh residents has confirmed the appropriateness of the policy towards prosperity and peace, which Kazakhstan is conducting."
Election monitors from the Council of Independent States, a Russia-dominated alliance of former Soviet republics, declared the elections free and fair, while opposition parties called the results rigged. Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the results were flawed, but nevertheless called the elections a positive step toward developing democracy in the ex-Soviet state.
In June, Nazarbayev dissolved parliament and called an election two years ahead of schedule in line with constitutional amendments he had proposed in May, and as part of a drive to improve Kazakhstan's image abroad as a democratic nation.
He said the election would result in a more powerful parliament. For the first time, the Mazhilis will have a say in the nomination of a prime minister and other government officials.
However, critics have pointed out that the constitutional changes which prompted Saturday's polling will also expand Nazarbayev's own power by removing restrictions on the number of terms the president can serve. Despite criticism of his autocratic style of leadership, the president remains popular in his home country, which has seen strong oil-driven economic growth in recent years.
More than 1,000 foreign observers monitored polling stations throughout the country.
