Polls close in Kazakhstan presidential election

Polls closed in Kazakhstan on Sunday where the incumbent president is widely expected to secure an easy victory in a snap election.

Five candidates were on the ballot against President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. With a short campaign period that began in late October, they had little opportunity to mount significant challenges.

Tokayev, apparently confident of holding a strong advantage, stayed away from a nationally televised election debate.The national elections commission said about 69% of the electorate had voted by the end of the day.