Kazakh police detain demonstrators during an anti-government protest during the presidential elections in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Sunday, June 9, 2019. Voters in Kazakhstan are choosing a successor to the president who had led the Central Asian country since independence from the Soviet Union, with a longtime loyalist expected to win easily. (AP Photo)
The Associated Press
MOSCOW (AP) - An ally of Kazakhstan's former president was named winner of the presidential election on Monday in a vote marred by a police crackdown on protesters who criticized the result as an orchestrated handover of power.
The Central Election Commission in this Central Asian country said Monday that Kassym-Jomart Tokayev won nearly 71 percent of the vote with all the ballots counted. The results have not yet been formally confirmed.
Tokayev became acting president when Nursultan Nazarbayev, who had led the country since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, abruptly stepped down. Shortly after Nazarbayev resigned, Kazakhstan's ruling party nominated Tokayev for presidency.
Some 500 people were taken into custody after police broke up rallies in Kazakhstan's two largest cities Sunday. Protests erupted again on Monday with people rallying in the capital Nur-Sultan, named after the former president, and the commercial capital Almaty.
An Associated Press photographer saw at least 50 people detained by police on a central square in Almaty Monday morning.
Kazakhstan's acting President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev leaves a booth at a polling station during the presidential elections in Nur-Sultan, the capital city of Kazakhstan, Sunday, June 9, 2019. Voters in Kazakhstan are choosing a successor to the president who had led the Central Asian country since independence from the Soviet Union, with a longtime loyalist expected to win easily. Sunday's snap election was called after Nursultan Nazarbayev's unexpected resignation in March.(AP Photo/Alexei Filippov)
The Associated Press
An election official carries a ballot box to count ballots at a polling stationduring the presidential elections in Nur-Sultan, the capital city of Kazakhstan, Sunday, June 9, 2019. Voters in Kazakhstan are choosing a successor to the president who had led the Central Asian country since independence from the Soviet Union, with a longtime loyalist expected to win easily. (AP Photo/Alexei Filippov)
The Associated Press
Kazakh police officers try to help their comrade during an anti-government protest during the presidential elections in Nur-Sultan, the capital city of Kazakhstan, Sunday, June 9, 2019. Voters in Kazakhstan are choosing a successor to the president who had led the Central Asian country since independence from the Soviet Union, with a longtime loyalist expected to win easily. (AP Photo/Alexei Filippov)
The Associated Press
A woman speaks to Kazakh police as they block demonstrators during an anti-government protest during the presidential elections in Nur-Sultan, the capital city of Kazakhstan, Sunday, June 9, 2019. Voters in Kazakhstan are choosing a successor to the president who had led the Central Asian country since independence from the Soviet Union, with a longtime loyalist expected to win easily. (AP Photo/Alexei Filippov)
The Associated Press