Election Day 2016: Today Georgia elects new Parliament

At 8am this morning polling stations around the country opened for 3.5 million voters in Georgia, who will  elect a new Parliament that will later form the Government of Georgia. 

Georgia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) announced all 3,645 polling stations nationwide were open and ready to host voters. 

Today Georgians will cast ballots to elect the 150-seat Parliament of Georgia, 77 members through party lists and 73 in the majoritarian districts. 

19 political parties and 6 election blocs are also running in the race. 

People will also vote to elect lawmakers in the 21-member Supreme Council of Adjara, Georgia’s western Autonomous Republic, in six election constituencies, as well as local authorities in some locations as several local officials had to quit posts for their participation in the elections. 

• 42,092 representatives from different political parties or blocs are ready to  observe the elections 
• 29,931 members of 111 local observing organisations are  monitoring the election process 
• 1,440 representatives from 55  foreign observing missions are  observing  the race
• 5,368 representatives from 184 media outlets had gained accreditations to  cover the election process 
• 55 polling stations will gradually open in 40 other countries

The Parliament of Georgia elected through today’s voting will  be the ninth in the history of independent Georgia. 

Polling stations will close for voters at 8pm today.