The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Kazakhstan

This page contains a list of the greatest Kazakhstani Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 35 of which were born in Kazakhstan. This makes Kazakhstan the birth place of the 74th most number of Politicians behind Iceland, and Libya.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Kazakhstani Politicians of all time. This list of famous Kazakhstani Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Kazakhstani Politicians.

1. Tomyris (-600 - -600)

With an HPI of 77.68, Tomyris is the most famous Kazakhstani Politician. Her biography has been translated into 48 different languages on wikipedia.

Tomyris (; Saka: *Taumuriya; Ancient Greek: Τομυρις, romanized: Tomuris; Latin: Tomyris) also called Thomyris, Tomris, or Tomiride, was a queen of the Massagetae who ruled in the 6th century BCE. Tomyris is known only from the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus of Halicarnassus, according to whom Tomyris led her armies to defend against an attack by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid Empire, and defeated and killed him in 530 BC. She is not mentioned in the few other early sources covering the period, especially Ctesias. Tomyris became a fairly popular subject in European art and literature during the Renaissance. In art the usual subject was her receiving the head of Cyrus, or putting it into the blood-filled container. This became part of the Power of Women group of women subjects who triumphed in various ways over men.

2. Nursultan Nazarbayev (b. 1940)

With an HPI of 72.90, Nursultan Nazarbayev is the 2nd most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 95 different languages.

Nursultan Abishuly Nazarbayev (born 6 July 1940) is a Kazakh politician who served as the first President of Kazakhstan, from the country's independence in 1991 until his formal resignation in 2019, and as the Chairman of the Security Council of Kazakhstan from 1991 to 2022. He held the special title of Elbasy from 2010 to 2022. Nazarbayev was one of the longest-ruling non-royal leaders in the world, having led Kazakhstan for nearly three decades, excluding chairmanship in the Security Council after the end of his presidency. He has often been referred to as a dictator due to usurpation of power and autocratic rule. Nazarbayev began his political career in 1962, joining the Communist Party of the Soviet Union while working as a factory steel worker. He held prominent positions within the party and in 1984, he was appointed as the Prime Minister of the Kazakh SSR by Dinmukhamed Kunaev. Nazarbayev became the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan in 1989. In 1990, he was elected as Kazakhstan's first president by the Supreme Soviet. Nazarbayev played a crucial role in opposing the 1991 coup d'état attempt by Soviet hardliners, which led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Nazarbayev ruled an authoritarian regime in Kazakhstan, where a pervasive cult of personality surrounded him, as human rights abuses were severe, dissent was suppressed, and elections were not free and fair. In the country's first direct presidential election, held in 1991, he appeared alone on the ballot with no opposing candidates and secured an overwhelming 98% of the vote. In 1995, he governed the country in a rule by decree, as the Supreme Council was absent. In April of that year, a presidential term referendum extended his presidency until 2000. Additionally, in August, constitutional referendum took place, significantly bolstering the executive powers through the introduction of a new draft for the Constitution of Kazakhstan. These actions consolidated Nazarbayev's authority and control over the country's political landscape. In 1999, Nazarbayev was re-elected second time for what was officially recognized as his first term, as the Constitutional Council's ruling in 2000 allowed him to run again in 2005 under the provisions of a 1995 amendment. Later, exploiting a 2007 amendment that removed term limits exclusively for Nazarbayev, he secured re-election in 2011 and 2015, serving his fourth and fifth terms as president. In 2018, the Parliament approved a constitutional amendment allowing Nazarbayev to lead the Security Council for life. During Nazarbayev's presidency, Kazakhstan experienced a rapid economic growth in 2000s, driven by high oil prices and market-oriented reforms, establishing the country as a prominent economic power in Central Asia. Foreign investments in key industries fueled modernization and infrastructure development. Additionally, Nazarbayev's foreign policy approach emphasized maintaining good relations with major powers and actively integrating Kazakhstan into regional organizations such as the Eurasian Economic Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States and globally by becoming a member of the World Trade Organization. Moreover, he played a crucial role in nuclear disarmament efforts by renouncing the country's inherited nuclear arsenal and closing the Semipalatinsk Test Site. Despite these accomplishments, challenges persisted due to widespread corruption and nepotism linked to Nazarbayev and his family, which hindered transparency and accountability, posing significant obstacles to Kazakhstan's development. In addition, Nazarbayev's tenure also confronted a series of economic challenges, including the 2007–2008 financial crisis, the 2010s oil glut, and the Russo-Ukrainian War, in which these events contributed to the devaluation of the Kazakhstani tenge and triggered periods of inflation. In March 2019, Nazarbayev resigned from the presidency amid anti-government rallies, handing power to Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, a close ally who went on to overwhelmingly win the snap presidential election in June 2019. Although he formally stepped down, Nazarbayev was widely considered a éminence grise in Kazakh politics, retaining significant influence as chairman of both the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan and Nur Otan until 2021 and chairing the Security Council until his dismissal amid the 2022 unrest. Protected by immunity from criminal prosecution until the 2022 constitutional referendum, Nazarbayev’s privileges were largely revoked thereafter. He continued to serve as an honorary member of the Senate and a member of the Constitutional Council until those titles were stripped in 2023.

3. Seljuk (902 - 1038)

With an HPI of 68.17, Seljuk is the 3rd most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 40 different languages.

Seljuk (died c. 1007 or 1009), variously romanized, was an Oghuz Turk warlord. He was the eponymous founder of the Seljuk dynasty and the namesake of Selçuk, the modern town near the ruins of ancient Ephesus in Turkey.

4. Muhammad Shaybani (1451 - 1510)

With an HPI of 67.80, Muhammad Shaybani is the 4th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 34 different languages.

Muhammad Shaybani Khan (Chagatai and Persian: محمد شیبانی; c. 1451 – 2 December 1510) was an Uzbek leader who consolidated various Uzbek tribes and laid the foundations for their ascendance in Transoxiana and the establishment of the Khanate of Bukhara. He was a Shaybanid or descendant of Shiban (or Shayban), the fifth son of Jochi, Genghis Khan's eldest son. He was the son of Shah-Budag, thus a grandson of the Uzbek conqueror Abu'l-Khayr Khan.

5. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (b. 1953)

With an HPI of 66.93, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is the 5th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. Her biography has been translated into 74 different languages.

Kassym-Jomart Kemeluly Tokayev (born 17 May 1953) is a Kazakh politician and diplomat who has served as the President of Kazakhstan since March 20, 2019. Born in Alma-Ata (now Almaty), Tokayev attended the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. After graduating in 1975, he worked as a diplomat in Singapore and China. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Tokayev became the deputy foreign minister of a newly independent Kazakhstan in 1992, where he was involved on the issues of nuclear disarmament within the former Soviet republics. In 1999, Tokayev became the deputy prime minister, and in October of that year with the endorsement of the Parliament, he was appointed as prime minister by President Nursultan Nazarbayev. From 2002, Tokayev served as foreign minister and state secretary, where he continued to play an active role in the field of nuclear non-proliferation. He was the director-general of the UN Office at Geneva from 2011 to 2013 and served twice as a chairman of the Kazakh Senate from 2007 to 2011 and 2013 to 2019. In 2019, Tokayev assumed office as the acting president after Nursultan Nazarbayev's resignation. Being a member of the ruling Amanat party, he won a non-democratic snap election in June of that year with the support of Nazarbayev as the nominee for the party. After being fully sworn to office, Tokayev pledged to continue Nazarbayev's policies. During his presidency, he has enacted several reforms including increasing workers' salaries, reducing corruption, abolishing capital punishment, and decentralising the local government. From 2020, Tokayev had endured the economic downturn and issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and War in Afghanistan and has sought to counter Kazakhstan's rising inflation, domestic terrorism, illegal migration, drug trafficking, nuclear energy development and power shortages caused by cryptocurrency mining, as well as the COVID-19 vaccination rollout. In 2022, Tokayev announced constitutional reforms that would limit his powers and grant more authority to the Parliament. As a result, he initiated a constitutional referendum which was backed by an overwhelming number of voters and led to the complete stripping of Nazarbayev's post-presidential privileges regarding policymaking. Since becoming president, Tokayev's political influence and role in Kazakhstan had steadily grown apart from Nazarbayev as he assumed various other powerful positions which were previously held by Nazarbayev starting with the chairmanship of the Assembly of People in 2021. In January 2022, he imposed a nationwide state of emergency, dismissed the entirety of Asqar Mamin's government, and ordered security forces to use deadly force following a two-week long violent unrest that had begun earlier that month. Shortly thereafter, Tokayev took the leading role in the Security Council and ruling Amanat party from Nazarbayev and along with his relatives, dismissed several officials who held a close relationship with Nazarbayev. While managing to maintain the country's stability, ensuring political transition, and enacting new reforms, Tokayev's governance has remained authoritarian with human rights abuses. The 2022 Suisse Secrets leaks revealed that the Tokayev family had maintained an elaborate network of secretive offshore wealth assets since at least 1998.

6. Akhmad Kadyrov (1951 - 2004)

With an HPI of 66.53, Akhmad Kadyrov is the 6th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 50 different languages.

Akhmat-Khadzhi Abdulkhamidovich Kadyrov (23 August 1951 – 9 May 2004) was a Russian politician and revolutionary who served as Chief Mufti of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria in the 1990s during and after the First Chechen War. At the outbreak of the Second Chechen War he switched sides, offering his service to the Russian government, and later became the President of the Chechen Republic from 5 October 2003, having acted as head of administration since July 2000. On 9 May 2004, he was assassinated by Chechen Islamists in Grozny, by a bomb blast during a Victory Day memorial parade. His son, Ramzan Kadyrov, who led his father's militia, became his successor in March 2007 as the President of the Chechen Republic.

7. Vladimir Zhirinovsky (1946 - 2022)

With an HPI of 65.71, Vladimir Zhirinovsky is the 7th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 64 different languages.

Vladimir Volfovich Zhirinovsky (Russian: Владимир Вольфович Жириновский, IPA: [vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr ˈvolʲfəvʲɪtɕ ʐɨrʲɪˈnofskʲɪj], né Eidelstein, Russian: Эйдельштейн; 25 April 1946 – 6 April 2022) was a Russian right-wing populist politician and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) from its creation in 1992 until his death in 2022. He had been a member of the State Duma since 1993 and leader of the LDPR group in the State Duma from 1993 to 2000, and from 2011 to 2022. He served as a deputy chairman of the State Duma from 2000 until 2011. He also worked as a delegate in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1996 to 2008. During his lifetime, Zhirinovsky ran in every single Russian presidential election apart from in 2004. He was known for many controversies, as well as staunch advocacy for Russian military action against NATO.

8. Aslan Maskhadov (1951 - 2005)

With an HPI of 65.45, Aslan Maskhadov is the 8th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 60 different languages.

Aslan (Khalid) Aliyevich Maskhadov (Russian: Асла́н (Хали́д) Али́евич Масха́дов; Chechen: Масхадан Али-воӀ Аслан (Халид), romanized: Masxadan Ali-voj Aslan (Xalid); 21 September 1951 – 8 March 2005) was a Soviet and Chechen politician and military commander who served as the third president of the unrecognized Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. He was credited by many with the Chechen victory in the First Chechen War, which allowed for the establishment of the de facto independent Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. Maskhadov was elected President of Chechnya in January 1997. Following the start of the Second Chechen War in August 1999, he returned to leading the guerrilla resistance against the Russian army. De facto Ichkeria ceased to exist at the beginning of 2000. Until his death, Maskhadov was President in exile. He was killed in Tolstoy-Yurt, a village in northern Chechnya, in March 2005.

9. Tughlugh Timur (1329 - 1363)

With an HPI of 61.51, Tughlugh Timur is the 9th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Tughlugh Timur Khan (Chagatai and Persian: تغلق تیمور خان; also Tughluq Tömür or Tughluk Timur) (1312/13–1363) was the Khan of Moghulistan from c. 1347 and Khan of the whole Chagatai Khanate from c. 1360 until his death. Esen Buqa (a direct descendant of Chagatai Khan) is believed to be his father. His reign is known for his conversion to Islam and his invasions of Transoxiana.

10. Edigu (1352 - 1419)

With an HPI of 61.35, Edigu is the 10th most famous Kazakhstani Politician. His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Edigu (also Edigey, Eðivkäy or Edege Mangit; 1352–1419) was a Mongol emir of the White Horde who founded a new political entity, which came to be known as the Nogai Horde.

People

Pantheon has 39 people classified as Kazakhstani politicians born between 600 BC and 1994. Of these 39, 19 (48.72%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Kazakhstani politicians include Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and Alu Alkhanov. The most famous deceased Kazakhstani politicians include Tomyris, Seljuk, and Muhammad Shaybani. As of April 2024, 3 new Kazakhstani politicians have been added to Pantheon including Turar Ryskulov, Lev Rokhlin, and Sergey Baburin.