Dariga Nursultanqyzy Nazarbayeva (born 7 May 1963 in Temirtau

Temirtau

Temirtau is a city in the Karaganda region of Kazakhstan. Pop 180,000.-History:*1905, June, 15 - the first groups of settlers settled down on the left bank of the Nura River. There were 40 families, that had arrived from Samara...

, Kazakh SSR

Kazakh SSR

The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Kazakh SSR for short, was one of republics that made up the Soviet Union.At in area, it was the second largest constituent republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata . Today it is the independent state of...

, Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

) is a Kazakh

Kazakhs

The Kazakhs are a Turkic people of the northern parts of Central Asia ....

 lawmaker and daughter of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev

Nursultan Nazarbayev

Nursultan Abishuly Nazarbayev has served as the President of Kazakhstan since the nation received its independence in 1991, after the fall of the Soviet Union...

.

At one point she worked as head of the official state-run news agency, Khabar

Khabar

The Khabar Agency is a major media outlet in Kazakhstan. It was established in 1995, known originally as the National Television News Agency. It is currently one of the largest networks in the country, and broadcasts daily in Russian and Kazakh. Additionally, Khabar runs the satellite channel...

, but she no longer does. She formed the Kazakh political party Asar, Kazakh for "All together." Asar merged with the pro-Nazarbayev party Otan

Fatherland (Kazakhstan)

Fatherland was the largest political party in Kazakhstan, led by Bakhytzhan Zhumagulov with over 700,000 members until December 22. At a subsequent party congress, delegates agreed to incorporate the Civic Party and the Agrarian Party and rename the party to Nur-Otan.Otan was originally...

 in July 2006.

Many analysts believe President Nazarbayev is preparing his daughter to succeed him upon his retirement or death. Her relationship with her father has deteriorated recently, in part due to the criticism of his administration she sometimes expresses.

She had a long marriage to Kazakh businessman and politician Rakhat Aliyev

Rakhat Aliyev

Rakhat Mukhtaruly Aliyev served as the First Vice Foreign Minister in the government of Kazakhstan until February 2007 when he was appointed to his second tour as Kazakhstan's Ambassador to Austria...

 until their divorce in June 2007. Aliyev claims that the divorce was executed without his consent, and that it was forced by President Nazarbayev. Nazarbayeva has two sons with Aliyev, Nurali and Aisoultan. She also has a daughter Venera. She is also a grandmother. Nurali's wife gave birth to Laura Aliyev in 2003.

Dariga served as a jury member in the second season of SuperStar KZ

SuperStar KZ

SuperStar KZ was a reality television show based on the popular British show Pop Idol, which aired from 2003 to 2007 on the Kazhak television station Perviy Kanal Evrasia. The talent contest determined the best young singers in Kazakhstan by allowing viewers to vote by phone or SMS...

.. She is an avid amateur opera singer. In spite of the lack of formal vocal training Dariga often performs opera arias at various concerts and events.

Besides her native Kazakh, Dariga is fluent in English, Russian, Italian and has some understanding of German.

External links

• Kazakh President's Daughter Chides Steel Baron Mittal
• Kazakhstan: New Political Party Borrows From Western Right
• Nazarbayev schmiss seine Tochter raus (German) Nazarbayev boots his daughter out.