Kassym-Jomart Tokayev

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, born May 17, 1953, in Alma-Ata, has served as the second President of Kazakhstan since March 20, 2019, becoming acting president when Nursultan Nazarbayev resigned and then winning a snap election that June; he has run as an independent since 2022, having previously belonged to Nur Otan and its successor Amanat. He earlier served as Prime Minister from 1999 to 2002, Chairman of the Senate from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2013 to 2019, twice as Foreign Minister, and as Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva from 2011 to 2013. The 2022 violent unrest prompted him to declare a state of emergency and request Collective Security Treaty Organization peacekeeping assistance, after which he distanced himself from Nazarbayev and pursued constitutional changes. He studied at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations and trained at diplomatic institutions in China.