Georgian foreign minister thanks int'l partners for monitoring elections
Minister Zalkaliani voting in the October 31 parliamentary elections held in Georgia. Photo via Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.
Tweet 
Share
Georgia's foreign minister David Zalkaliani expressed gratitude to the country's international partners for sending their observers for the parliamentary elections held on Saturday and pointed out their support for "further consolidation of democracy in Georgia".
Zalkaliani posted his statement on social media on Sunday, following the voting the day before, and said the partner governments and organisations "highly appraised" the election's importance under a changed system.
Our partners and friends highly appraise the importance of the elections conducted under the new electoral system."
They highlight that the elections were held in a free and pluralistic environment and express the readiness to cooperate with the Georgian government in implementing the recommendations that are aimed to promote Georgia’s democratic development [...]", Zalkaliani said in his brief update.
International monitors and embassies responded to the election on Sunday, with OSCE/ODIHR monitors' initial assessment of the process saying the elections were "competitive and, overall, fundamental freedoms were respected" while some deficiencies were also highlighted.
The United States Embassy in Georgia welcomed "competitive" elections while the Lithuanian foreign ministry said pre-election reforms had enabled the country to conduct the vote "smoothly". Both diplomatic offices also urged authorities to work on addressing shortcomings found in the process.
The Lithuanian Foreign Ministry has reacted to the October 31 parliamentary elections in Georgia by welcoming the reforms that enabled the country to conduct the vote 'smoothly' and acknowledging international observers' conclusions on competitive process, but also pointing out 'irregularities and incidents'.
The United States Embassy in Georgia has welcomed the recent "competitive" parliamentary elections in the country and applauded citizens for their turnout against the backdrop of the pandemic, while also pointing out "deficiencies" in the process that require resolution by the authorities.
“Georgia’s parliamentary elections were competitive and, overall, fundamental freedoms were respected”, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said in its preliminary statement today.
Georgia has held peaceful, just, safe and democratic elections, says Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia wrote on his Facebook today that he has gone into self-isolation after one of his aides tested positive for coronavirus. PM Gakharia, who continues to work remotely, thanked international observers ‘for their commitment to Georgia’s democracy’ amid the coronavirus pandemic.
MEPs on EU-Georgia relations from the European Parliament have congratulated Georgia, 'a key ally of the EU', on 'successfully' organising the first round of the parliamentary elections held on October 31 in Georgia despite ‘the difficult epidemiological context'.
The European Georgia opposition party, which has received five mandates in the 150-member parliament, has refused to have its MPs take up their mandates in parliament and participate in the election run-off on November 21 in several majoritarian constituencies.
Deputy Spokesperson of the US Department of State Cale Brown has tweeted that ‘we share OSCE’s assessments’ that Georgian parliamentary elections ‘competitive and fundamental freedoms were respected.’ Most of the Georgian opposition parties claim that the elections were fabricated and have plans to take to the streets on November 8 and demand repeat elections. The ruling Georgian Dream party says that the opposition has failed to accept the election results in a dignified manner.
All eight opposition parties who crossed the one per cent election threshold in the October 31 parliament elections have signed an agreement earlier today not to take up their mandates in parliament. 12 other opposition parties, who were unable to enter the legislative body, also signed the agreement and stated that the elections ‘were not legitimate as they were fabricated.’ All 20 signatory parties have stated that they will continue to fight against the government.
Chairperson of the Georgian Central Election Commision (CEC) Tamar Zhvania met with the diplomatic corps and representatives of international observation missions to respond to questions about discrepancies at voting stations which have caused controversies.