Kazakh president names deputy chief of staff a Senate deputy

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev named his deputy chief of staff, Maulen Ashimbayev, a Senate deputy on Monday, replacing Dariga Nazarbayeva, who has served as the speaker of the upper house.

The Senate is yet to elect a new speaker and the appointment of 49-year-old Ashimbayev, a political strategist who has long served on senior positions in the Central Asian former Soviet republic, could indicate that he is a candidate. Although parliamentary powers are limited in the oil-rich nation's centralized political system, the senate speaker is first in line to take over the presidency in the event of the incumbent's resignation or death.

Dauren Abayev, previously minister of information and social accord, has replaced Ashimbayev as the president's first deputy chief of staff, Tokayev's office said.