By Carmen Clara Rodriguez.

Nearly 10 million people will head to the polls for presidential elections in Kazakhstan this weekend, when voters will choose the leader of this Central Asian nation over the next five years.

A total of 9,741 polling stations are to open their doors Sunday from 7:00 a.m until 8:00 p.m local time for the elections, in which current President Nursultan Nazarbayev is the clear favorite.

Voter participation is expected to be high, according to election officials.

"Everything is ready to ensure that the fifth presidential election since Kazakh independence is held normally and with full guarantees," the president of the Public Electoral Commission, Nurlan Yerimbetov, told a press conference on Saturday.

The three candidates vying for the nation's highest post are Turgun Syzdykov, of the Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan; the independent candidate Abelgazy Kussainov; and incumbent Nursultan Nazarbayev, of the ruling Nur Otan party.

Initially 22 applications were submitted, but the republic's Central Electoral Commission rejected 17 for not meeting the requirements, including passing an exam in the Kazakh language.

Astana's streets were quiet on Saturday, and there were few signs that presidential elections are to be held the following day, as campaign advertising is scant compared to the West.

More than 1,100 observers are to be present at the country's polling stations.

This number includes observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe; members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, an organization whose participating countries are former Soviet republics; and members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, as well as independent observers.

The Foreign Ministry estimates that 20,000 Kazakhs live abroad and to ensure their participation in these elections, which were originally slated for next year, "the diplomatic missions of Kazakhstan around the world were provided the necessary tools," Kazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov said.

Hundreds of international journalists have been accredited to cover the polling that national experts describe as "the election of change."

National surveys estimate that Nazarbayev will likely garner 90 percent of the vote. The incumbent president secured 95.5 percent of the ballots in 2011 and 91.15 percent in 2005 elections.

Several experts credit the president's popularity to political and economic stability.

"For most Kazakhs, Nazarbayev guarantees stability and prosperity, and this statement is backed up by economic data," they added.

Kazakhstan has the best quality of life and highest wages among the former Soviet republics.

The average monthly Kazakh salary is equivalent to $669, compared to $230 in Kyrgyzstan and $173 in Tajikistan, according to 2014 data from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.

The data did not include other former Soviet republics.

Nazarbayev encouraged his countrymen to participate in the election in an open letter that the Akorda presidential palace released Friday, two days before the polling.

"Every citizen sets the priorities and defines the path to future development when they participate in elections. I am sure that Kazakhs will choose political stability and the kind of development that will contribute to strengthening peace and harmony in our country," he wrote.

Massive participation in the elections "will help build confidence, will allow us to attract even more investment for the further development of Kazakhstan, and will help raise living standards," the letter concluded. EFE

cla/jrh/mc