Who will vote for whom? IRI releases new poll in run up to municipal elections
14 per cent of Georgians believe that the upcoming municipal elections definitely won’t be free and fair, while 13 per cent of them think the opposite. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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The International Republican Institute (IRI) has released the results of a nationwide poll which revealed that 75 per cent of Georgians are very likely to vote in the upcoming municipal elections.
25 per cent of the voters who are not likely to participate in the local elections say that they ‘do not have confidence in the electoral process.’
Image: IRI Georgia.
The ruling Georgian Dream party is supported by 26 per cent of voters, while the biggest opposition United National Movement (UNM) party is supported by 14 per cent, the third place in the ranking was taken by recently formed opposition party For Georgia which is lead by former Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia with nine per cent.
Image: IRI Georgia.
IRI’s polls say that 30 per cent of Georgians would not vote for the opposition UNM under any circumstances while 24 per cent of interviewees won’t vote for the ruling Georgian Dream party.
Image: IRI Georgia.
14 per cent of Georgians believe that the upcoming municipal elections definitely won’t be free and fair, while 13 per cent of them think the opposite.
Image: IRI Georgia.
The poll also said that 29 per cent of Georgians support opposition parties’ demands for snap parliamentary elections, while 27 per cent of voters are against it.
This poll demonstrates that Georgians want to see parties competing in the upcoming municipal elections put forth platforms focused on addressing economic issues,” Director of IRI’s Eurasia Division Stephen Nix said.
The poll was conducted in June 2021 prior to the start of campaign season for the October 2021 municipal elections.
1,500 Georgian citizens aged 18 or older were interviewed in the framework of the poll.
The International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Center for Insights in Survey Research has conducted its first nationwide poll of Georgia since the 2020 parliamentary elections which says that 60% of Georgian citizens either ‘definitely’ (42%) or ‘somewhat’ (18%) do not support the opposition’s boycott of parliament.
The International Republican Institute (IRI), which conducted a Technical Election Assessment Mission (TEAM) during Georgia’s 2020 national parliamentary elections last year, has published its final report today.
The United States Embassy in Georgia welcomes the findings of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) final report on Georgia’s parliamentary elections. The US Embassy says the report ‘underscores the continued need for important reforms, particularly in the areas of campaign finance, electoral administration compositions, and dispute resolution’.
The Georgian parliament has elected Giorgi Kalandarishvili as the new head of the Central Election Commission (CEC) in a fourth vote, following the resignation of the body’s former chair Tamar Zhvania in late June. Two other individuals, Gia Tsatsashvili and Maia Zaridze, were elected members of the commission.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has received the most donations of all political parties from May till today which amounted to 230,000 GEL (about $73,725/€62,090), the Georgian State Audit Office reports. Former Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia’s political party For Georgia, which was launched on May 29, 2021, has received 219,516 GEL (about $70,364/€59,259) in the last three months. Among the party’s donors are MPs and For Georgia members.
A new nationwide poll conducted in Georgia by the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Center for Insights in Survey Research reveals ‘continued economic concerns and negative perceptions of growing political polarisation.’ This poll which was fielded in June 2021 prior to the start of the pre-election campaigns for the October 2021 municipal elections say that the Georgian Dream ruling party candidate for Tbilisi, Mayor Kakha Kaladze, is the most liked politician in the country.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has confirmed October 2 as the date of local self-government elections of Georgia.
An opposition political party For Georgia has made an official decision to participate in the 2021 local self-government elections.
Transparency International Georgia (TI Georgia) and International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) have left consultations to select members for the Georgian Central Election Commission’s advisory group for election disputes.
The survey conducted by the research organisation in the Caucasus region Gorbi, commissioned by TV channel Imedi, has reported that 46.8 per cent of Georgians would vote for the ruling Georgian Dream party if the local municipal elections were held today.
The opposition United National Movement (UNM) party members claim the ruling Georgian Dream party is bribing voters ahead of local self-government elections and filed a lawsuit against the party. The opposition leaders noted that they have audio and video footage that proves the crime, noting that in Georgia there is ‘selective justice.’
OSCE/ODIHR will send 350 short-term and 30 long-term observers to Georgia for the country’s October 2 municipal elections.
The International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) has reported 15 alleged cases of dismissal on political grounds in Georgia in the run up to the October 2 municipal elections. The organisation has also reported several cases of direct or indirect compulsion for the involvement of the educational institutions’ employees in the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party’s campaign. However, ISFED praised the process of interviewing the candidates for membership of the District Election Commission (DEC) which was broadcast live.
The opposition European Georgia party has nominated members for its Tbilisi party list earlier today in the run up to the October 2 self-government elections. Leader and executive secretary of the party Akaki Bobokhidze introduced 35 people from the party for Tbilisi City Council.
A new survey released by the International Republican Institute on Tuesday showed a majority of respondents in Georgia naming the European Union and the United States as the country’s “most important political partners” while highlighting Russia as a “major threat”.