Kazakhstan on Sunday elected interim leader Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the hand-picked successor of long-term former President Nursultan Nazarbayev, with around 70 per cent of the vote, exit polls showed.

The government-approved “Public Opinion” pollster gave Tokayev 70.13 per cent while his closest rival, opposition candidate Amirzhan Kosanov received 15.39 per cent.