political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
in
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...
. Its political base is in the south of the country, but the party is headquartered in its capital
Bishkek
Bishkek, formerly known as Pishpek (until 1926), and then Frunze (1926–1991), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is also the administrative centre of the Chüy Region. Bishkek is situated near the Kazakhstan ...
. In 2014, it merged with the Respublika party to create
Respublika–Ata Zhurt
Respublika–Ata Zhurt (, sometimes spelled as Respublika–Ata Jurt) was a Kyrgyz political party that was created after the merger of the Respublika and Ata-Zhurt
Ata-Zhurt or Ata-Jurt ( ; ) is a political party in Kyrgyzstan. Its polit ...
, but the two parties ended up splitting again four months before the parliamentary elections of 2020, in which Ata-Zhurt instead formed a joint list with Mekenim Kyrgyzstan. After the results of that vote were annulled, Ata-Zhurt contested the 2021 elections independently and came in first with 19% of the vote. The party is led by Kamchybek Tashiyev, and has previously supported the ousted former President
Kurmanbek Bakiyev
Kurmanbek Sali uulu Bakiyev (born 1 August 1949) is a Kyrgyzstani politician who served as the second president of Kyrgyzstan from 2005 until his removal from office as a result of the Kyrgyz Revolution of 2010, forcing Bakiyev to flee the coun ...
.
2010 parliamentary elections
In the
Kyrgyzstani parliamentary election, 2010
Early parliamentary elections were held in Kyrgyzstan on 10 October 2010. All 120 seats of the Supreme Council were elected by the party list system.2010 referendum and restore the
presidency
A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...
to its former state.
On 7 October, the party's headquarters in Bishkek were ransacked and party literature set on fire by a group of demonstrators who called for the party to be banned. The demonstrators allegedly included family members of the victims of April 2010 violence in Bishkek.
In the election, the party won a number of seats from its traditional southern bastion, though it barely passed the threshold in the capital and the
Chuy
Chuy () is a city in the extreme east of Uruguay, in the Rocha Department, northeast of Montevideo. It lies on the border with Brazil, separated from its Brazilian sister town of Chuí only by a shared avenue that serves as the border, and by the ...
region. The party received the votes of 8.89% of eligible voters, giving it 28 of 120 seats in parliament. This result made the party the first of five parties to surpass the support threshold of 5% of eligible voters necessary to enter parliament. As a result, Ata-Zhurt was part of the governing coalition, with its MP
Akhmatbek Keldibekov
Akhmatbek Keldibekov (born 16 June 1966) was the Speaker of Parliament in Kyrgyzstan as of 17 December 2010, in office until 2011. He is a member of the Ata-Zhurt party. He was elected with 101 votes in favour and 14 against as part of the format ...
chosen as Speaker of Parliament.
Among the party's parliamentary
deputies
A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be appointed, or hereditary. Legislatures may be supra-nati ...
are some individuals of non-Kyrgyz ancestry, including
Ravshanbek Sabirov
Ravshanbek Sabirov is a deputy in the Jogorku Kenesh, the parliament of Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishke ...
Kamchibek Tashiyev, the head of Ata-Zhurt, said he had been attacked in his home on October 23, 2010. "They broke in like bandits...I think they intended to shoot me. I believe they tried to eliminate me—the forces that want to cancel election results and impose a state of emergency. I know for sure, GSNB (security services) was behind these actions."