Election Day: polling stations open for 3.5 million voters in Georgia to elect 10th national legislature

Georgians are heading to the polls today to elect the country’s 10th national legislature since independence from the Soviet Union back in 1991. 

All polling stations around the country have been opened without any problems, the Georgian Central Election Commission has stated earlier today. 

For the first time, the elections will be held per a mixed electoral system, with 120 members of parliament (MP) to be elected via party lists and the remaining 30 running in single-member majoritarian districts.

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An election bloc or party which receives less than 40.54 per cent of votes (less than 76 seats in the 150-member parliament) in the proportional elections will not be able to form a government.

Unlike previous elections, the parties which will receive at least one per cent of total votes will be allowed into parliament. 

• 3, 657 polling stations had been prepared to receive voters amid the pandemic, as well as 11 stations established for exceptional cases and 127 special stations for the voters in hospitals and isolation (quarantine, self-isolation).
• 52 Polling stations have been opened abroad in 38 foreign states (two of the 52 in Afghanistan). 
• 3, 526, 023 voters are on voter lists, including 14,170 voters registered abroad. 
• 80, 819 representatives of political parties and election blocs will monitor the elections, as well as 46,981 representatives of 132 local observer organisations and 910 observers from five election administrations, 20 embassies, and 23 international organisations. 
• 5, 971 representatives of 118 media outlets will cover the electoral process. 
• 1,134 electoral precincts are adapted for wheelchair users. 

Any interested individual will be able to observe the process of summarising preliminary election results at the CEC using Internet live streaming. 

The latter is ensured by using 360-degree technology and is available at the CEC Facebook page, YouTube, and official CEC website.