Archive · 2026 · From the print edition of Tuesday 21 July 2026, Vol. 34, No. 10,442
NewsA Year Out, Nurzhan Lists Weigh a Joint Ticket
Russo-aligned deputies and union officials are discussing a single opposition ticket for November 2027, with Oleg Zubarev and Elena Petrova both mentioned.
NURZHAN — With the general election fixed for 2 November 2027, the Russo-aligned civic lists of Nurzhan have begun talks on fielding a single ticket for Governor and Lieutenant Governor, according to deputies and union officials who spoke to the Herald.
The name most often mentioned is Oleg Zubarev, the engineer and city councillor who was runner-up in 2023 with an official 4.61 percent, and a little over 11 percent in Nurzhan. Trade-union circles have floated an alternative ticket led by the councillor Elena Petrova, recalling the union-backed nominee struck from the ballot in 2015. Neither has declared. Any ticket will need 10,000 verified signatures and candidates with ten years’ continuous residence under the Election Commission’s 2015 rules.
The three Russo-aligned deputies in the legislature, elected on lists funded largely by businessmen linked to NurGaz, form its only consistent opposition. Kamran Bekzatov has never stood for office or endorsed a candidate, and NurGaz declined to comment.
The Democratic Party of Irad has not said whether Governor Erlan Toktarov will stand again or who will lead its ticket, saying only that it will announce it “at the proper time”. The commentator Jason Ilyasov, who will meet the residence rule in 2027, has said he has “not ruled anything out”.