Georgia.. The opposition denies the “stealing” of the elections

The Georgian opposition accused the ruling party “Georgian Dream” of “stealing the elections”, amid controversy and doubt over the first count data.

After announcing his victory with 53 percent of the votes, according to preliminary results released by the Central Election Commission, the ruling party, led by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, appears to have known for his anti-Russian bias, is going to take control of Parliament. .

On the other hand, the opposition forces, which include alliances such as the “Alliance for Change,” “Unity to Save Georgia,” and “Strong Georgia,” received only 39 percent of the votes. , which raised serious doubts after the differences in the results of the polls, which were carried out at Exiting polling stations.

Polls for pro- and opposition media were sharply divided, with the state-run Imedi channel giving 56 percent to the ruling party, while opposition polls showed that “Georgian Dream” received only 42 percent.

This gap increased the intensity of the protests that swept the streets, due to the demands of the opposition to reconsider the integrity of the electoral process.

The final votes are expected to be announced on Sunday, but according to the preliminary results, the “Georgian Dream” will have 89 parliamentary seats out of 150. This number is enough to keep the current government, but not enough for a single absolute majority that would allow it to make “major” constitutional changes.

The National Unity Movement, which heads the “Unity to Save Georgia” coalition, immediately rejected the results. do not accept the results of the stolen elections, and we do not intend to recognize the results of these elections.” .

Bokochava called on other opposition parties to stand against the announced results, saying that “major protests” were likely to happen later.

Regarding the leader of the “Strong Georgia” party, Mamuka Khazaradze, he then confirmed that “the opposition has won the decisive elections for the future of the Caucasian country in Europe.”

Niko Gvaramia, a member of the Alliance for Change, said his organization would not recognize the announced outcome, describing the process as a “coup.”

For the first time, Georgia used a new electronic ballot system, with a paper backup, allowing results to be announced just hours after the polls closed at 8pm local time.

Natia Yocelani, a spokeswoman for the Commission, said that voting took place “in a calm environment” in the 3,111 polling stations despite “minor technical faults”.

The participation rate reached around 59 percent, the highest since 2012, when “Georgian Dream” took power, according to the committee.

Trying to avoid street protests, Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze, a member of the Georgian Dream, warned the opposition that any “illegal” actions “will be met with a strong response from the state.”

President Salome Zurabishvili, who broke with the ruling party and supported anti-government campaign movements, said on social media that the opposition parties “won 52 percent despite efforts to to manipulate the elections and without votes from the diaspora.

The “Georgian Dream” presented the elections as a choice between peace and war, electoral propaganda that said the victory of the opposition would lead Georgia to another war with Russia, as the two countries fought a brief war in August 2008 when Russia took control of it. part of the territory of Georgia.

Regarding the Georgian opposition, he said that the elections are a choice between the West and Russia, and between democracy and tyranny, a statement made by officials in the United States and Europe criticizing the “dream George” as a result of the decline in democracy.

Tensions rose before the elections, after the “Georgian Dream” claimed that the West was interfering with the elections, while the opposition accused Russia of spreading the virus.

Arguments and allegations of fraud emerged during the polls, with an RFE/RL correspondent reporting an incident in the southern city of Marioli, where a member of the opposition party was beaten by a representative of the “Georgian Dream” amid reports about filling a ballot box.

In Rustavi, a city about 20 kilometers southeast of Tbilisi, RFE/RL reporter David Mkhedlidze was verbally abused and prevented from doing his job at a polling station by unknown people who tried to take his phone.

A witness told RFE/RL that there were unknown people inside the polling stations, violating the law. Although the police were called, no one showed up, according to the witness.

Observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) will hold a conference on Sunday to present their views on the integrity of the elections, while the Association of Young Lawyers, a non-governmental organisation, said that they had observed “major violations”. in the election process, including physical violence and threats, interference with the work of election observers, and violation of voting secrecy.

The agency said its monitors recorded about 300 “cases of violations.”

The Georgian Dream party was founded by Ivanishvili, the richest man in Georgia, who made his fortune in Russia.

After casting his vote, Ivanishvili urged Georgians to participate and vote in large numbers, accusing them of being in the service of a “foreign country” that could drag Georgia into war. the face of Russia.

The Kremlin did not hide its preference for the victory of the “Georgian Dream,” as Magarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of the Kremlin-funded news agencies RT and Sputnik, congratulated the election results, and said in a post on the X. website, “The Georgians won!

Polls show that Georgians generally support the European Union and NATO, but they also want to avoid conflict with Russia and express doubts about issues such as gay rights.

Among the controversial laws passed by “Georgian Dream” is one that forces organizations that receive 20 percent or more of their money from abroad to register as “foreign agents.”

Opponents described this law as “Russia’s law” and saw it as authoritarian and inspired by similar laws used to limit dissent in Russia.

The legislation earlier this year led to mass protests, which led the United States to impose sanctions on several Georgians and threaten to freeze aid to Tbilisi.

The European Union may also consider suspending its visa-free regime with Georgia if elections are not “free and fair,” the bloc’s ambassador to Tbilisi said in September.

Gay rights were among other pieces of legislation that sparked controversy in Georgia, with Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze saying after the vote, “This is a referendum between war and peace, between immoral propaganda and traditional values. This is a referendum on the dark history of the country. and a bright future.”

The Electoral Commission established a new rule designed before the vote that requires parties or coalitions to receive at least 5 percent of the votes to enter Parliament.

The four main opposition groups directed their criticism at the ruling party rather than each other, with the common goal of ending 12 years of “Georgian Dream” rule and reviving Georgia’s frozen bid to join to the European Union.

They agreed that if the opposition allowed the country’s president, Zurabishvili, to form a technocratic government that would restore good relations with the West and abolish the most authoritarian laws passed by the “Georgian Dream”. ” ahead of the campaign.