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In the parliamentary elections held on October 31 in Georgia, the ruling Georgian Dream party celebrates the victory and the opposition coalition led by former President Mikheil Saakashvili calls for a boycott.
In 2020, the post-Soviet space is actively shaking. Belarus and Krigizia are on strike, now it is Georgia’s turn. Parliamentary elections were held there, which the opposition, led by Mikheil Saakashvili, not unknown in Ukraine, saw as the almost most realistic opportunity in recent years to seize power. But not yet. For now, because Miho is calling the Georgians to the Maidan again.
Correspondent.net monitors the situation in Georgia.
Election results
In Georgia’s parliamentary elections, a mixed system operates: 120 out of 150 MPs are elected by party lists. The remaining 30 deputies are elected from electoral districts.
48 parties and 2 political blocs participated in the elections to the Georgian parliament. The entry barrier in the current elections is set at just 1%.
The Georgian party in power obtained 48.15% of the votes, the Saakashvili bloc – United National Movement – United Opposition – 27.14%. Other small opposition parties also entered parliament: European Georgia – 3.78%, Lelo – 3.15%, Agmashenebeli Strategy – 3.15%, Alliance of Patriots of Georgia – 3.14%, Girchi – 2.89 %, Citizens – 1.33% and labor 1%.
Thus, only on the basis of a quota of 120 deputies determined for a party, the ruling political force will immediately receive 76 mandates, which means an individual majority in parliament and the ability to form a government.
The situation in the districts is not very happy for the opposition either. It is almost completely clear that the Georgia Dream will receive 13 terms from 30 electoral districts. The remaining 17 electoral districts will host the second round of elections. Candidates from the ruling party are at the top in 16 of the 17 districts.
Opposition protests
The opposition announced a “total falsification” of the elections and the start of a protest action. Near the parliament, on Sunday, November 1, they even managed to set up tents.
All the opposition parties that are entering the new parliament, and these are all except the Georgia Dream, have declared a boycott and are rejecting mandates in protest against electoral fraud.
Under the law, the 150-seat Georgian parliament is authorized only after at least two-thirds of its composition, that is, 100 deputies, come together to take the oath. And the Georgia Dream now has every chance of gathering this hundred on its own.
And the West?
The OSCE mission did not see any serious irregularities in the Georgia elections, which greatly undermines the opposition’s accusations of fraud.
“The elections were competitive and, as a result, fundamental freedoms were respected, although there were constant allegations that voters were being pressured, and there was no clear dividing line between the ruling party and the state, undermining confidence in the process, “said Elona Jebreah Hodge. Observer for the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and Head of a short-term mission.
He noted that the elections were held “generally effectively” despite the difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
“At the same time, the dominant representation of the ruling party in the electoral commissions created a negative perception among the people of how fair and independent elections were conducted at all levels,” added Hoxha.
At the same time, the public organization Transparency International – Georgia described the elections as a “step backwards” compared to the 2016 elections. Its observers speak of 170 registered violations and 46 complaints filed.
TI – Georgia indicates that the CEC began publishing preliminary results almost 8 hours after the polls closed. On the day of the elections, there were cases of clashes near the polling stations, obstruction of the work of the observers and the media, violation of the secrecy of the vote.
In particular, the TI observer in Marneuli claims that one of the voters voted 10 times. In this regard, the organization demands to invalidate the results of the vote throughout the premises. Sometimes they entered the booths in pairs.
It is the 8:00 pause with the announcement of the results, according to the opposition, that most clearly indicates violations.
It will be hot in Georgia in the near future.
