Record number of OSCE special monitors observe Georgia’s elections

The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has sent a record number of special monitors to observe Georgia’s October Parliamentary Elections.

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) launched its monitoring mission in Georgia today.

More than two dozen ODIHR monitors from several countries will spend the next month observing the pre-election period in Georgia, as well as the voting process itself on Election Day (October 8, 2016).

This morning Georgia’s Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze met the ODIHR representatives in capital Tbilisi.

"A record number of observers will monitor this year’s elections. The mission was invited by the Georgian Government,” Janelidze said.

The OSCE observer mission consisted of 26 monitors from 15 countries. Janelidze promised the Government would do its best to support the observers and help them in their work.

"Our aim is for the pre-election period and the elections to be held as transparently as possible,” Janelidze said.

Georgia and the OSCE have cooperated for almost two decades in this direction. The first time OSCE observers monitored elections in Georgia was in 1999.

Alongside ODIHR monitors, Georgia also invited observers from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, European Parliament, Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Guam, African Union and other international organisations.

Official monitoring missions of 80 countries were also invited.

There are 39 days until the Parliamentary Elections in Georgia.