Suvanaliev and Zhapykeev fail Kyrgyz language test for presidential bid

Former Interior Minister Omurbek Suvanaliev and former head of the Service for Combating Economic Crimes Syimyk Zhapykeev failed the state Kyrgyz language exam required to register as candidates in the upcoming presidential election in Kyrgyzstan. The test was held on 8 October at the state institution Kyrgyztest.

Suvanaliev told several media outlets that the main reason for his failure was a lack of sufficient writing experience. He said that after forty years of management work and giving orders, his skill at writing by hand and on a computer had declined, so he did not score enough points to confirm B2 level. He received a high score for reading and listening but not for the written essay. He has not yet decided whether to retake the exam.

Zhapykeev disagreed with the final scores. He said he graduated from a Kyrgyz school, studied in the national department of a university, and spent many years conducting investigations in the prosecutor's office in the state language. In his view, the tasks, especially the computer-based written part, were unreasonably difficult.

Early presidential elections in Kyrgyzstan are scheduled for 27 January 2027, and the candidate nomination stage will last until 13 November 2026. Incumbent President Sadyr Japarov has announced his intention to run, while entrepreneur Aimen Kasenov has filed an application with the Central Election Commission.