Interior Ministry: public order maintained to enable citizens to vote freely
TMeanwhile, the Central Election Commission calls upon all electoral commissions ‘to act in line with the norms defined by the legislation, the latter is necessary to professionally conduct the elections’. Photo: Nino alavidze/Agenda.ge
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The Georgian Interior Ministry says the public order is being maintained throughout the country to ensure that citizens can cast their ballot in free and safe environment.
Ministry representative Natia Kovziashvili said at a news briefing that the ministry representatives are in close communication with the local and international non-government organisations as well as the Public Defender’s Office.
During the briefing Kovziashvili named some of the incidents that took place in various constituencies of Georgia on the election day, including the illegal interference into journalists’ activities in Zugdidi, western Georgia, as well as a violent confrontation adjacent to the polling station in the village of Kizilajlo in Marneuli municipality, Kvemo Kartli region.
We call on every person and organization involved in the election process despite their political views to adhere to law, obey to the lawful orders of the police and contribute to holding the elections in a peaceful and safe environment”, Kovziashvili said.
Meanwhile, civic organizations and political parties also report on the election day violations among others in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
Shame Movement has tweeted:
#Gvote21 @FormulaGe reports that @MovementDroa’s Shushana Matsaberidze who’s observing elections in Gldani, says that up to 10 criminal police reps’ are mobilized near the polling station and do not keep the 100 meters set distance. She believes this happens to pressure voters. pic.twitter.com/BwrzX0GFHS
— Shame Movement (@Shamemovement) October 2, 2021
Droa movement has meanwhile stated that their observers have noticed criminal police outside one of the polling stations in Gldani constituency in Tbilisi 'most likely to intimidate voters and put psychological pressure on them'.
The situation got tense in #Gldani - where our observer caught someone handing out material to commission members from the window.
— Droa (@MovementDroa) October 2, 2021
Commission members didn't let her file a complaint, GD's party activist/agitator showed up soon after & the Police was ordered. #GVote21 pic.twitter.com/B9of0RuOW1
Various violations have been reported from other constituencies as well:
#gevote2021 major violation: the precinct protocol from Kutaisi was signed and stamped in advance. They'll write the results they want afterwards. Outrageous.
— Shota Dighmelashvili (@shotadig) October 2, 2021
In @CivilEC_ we continue to monitor violations. Follow us here and upload the violations on https://t.co/Xh99IC8w4w pic.twitter.com/3u2zIkRPov
The Central Election Commission (CEC) has however stated that the above summary protocol will be destroyed, while the election precinct will be provided with the new summary protocol.
Stressing that the election administration ‘will have an appropriate response on similar misconducts’, the CEC calls upon all electoral commissions ‘to act in line with the norms defined by the legislation, the latter is necessary to professionally conduct the elections’.
Head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia, who is running for Tbilisi mayor, has stated that the opposition is winning the municipal elections and urged voters to actively participate in the race to ‘boost the difference’ in the votes received by the ruling party and the opposition.
Tbilisi-based non-government organizations, including the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) and Transparency International Georgia, who are observing the municipal elections today, have reported on election violations throughout the country.
United States Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan says ‘Georgia needs more political stability and not more polarization’. Degnan, who is visiting the precincts in Marneuli as an election observer, says ‘this is a very important day for Georgia’.
EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Hartzell says that today’s municipal elections are a test for Georgian democracy, ‘which I hope that Georgia will successfully pass’, he said earlier today.
A total of 1,160,413 voters (33.18 per cent of eligible voters) have cast their ballots in the Georgian municipal elections as of 3 p.m. today. Georgia’s Central Election Commission says that Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti is still the most active constituency where 47.5 per cent of registered voters have cast their vote.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili says that the ruling Georgian (GD) party is winning a ‘convincing victory’ in all municipalities in the elections and urged voters to actively participate in the race to ‘strengthen our victory.’ At a briefing earlier today Garibashvili said that ‘today we are able to finally defeat polarisation, destruction, hatred and lies in Georgian politics.’
A Georgian Dream press briefing hours before the closing of polling stations across Georgia alleged a "mobilisation" by opposition supporters at voting locations, while also claiming cases of "misinformation" around the voting process on Saturday.
Traffic on the Rikoti Highway today created difficulties for voters travelling from the Georgian capital city of Tbilisi to the regions or vice versa to cast their votes. The Roads Department of Georgia explains the reason for the restricted traffic was the collapse of a slope. The Roads Department announced that work is underway to restore movement in the shortest possible time.
An opposition Labour Party supporter has been allegedly stabbed at polling station No. 52 in Marneuli, Kvemo Kartli region. Eivaz Mamedov, 35, has been delivered to the hospital, Formula TV reports. The Labour Party member Ali Badirov accuses ruling Georgian Dream party supporter Gurkhan Ramazanov, in committing the offence.
The vote count will be taped in 3,200 polling stations during the October 2 municipal elections in Georgia for the first time as part of an additional transparency measure, spokesperson of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia Natia Ioseliani has stated. "Video recordings will be promptly uploaded to the internet on the Google Drive platform. Video cameras will also be used to record the recounting procedure as well. As a result of electoral reform it will be implemented for the first time this year,” said Ioseliani.
Municipal elections unlike other elections have majoritarian, proportional and mayoral ballots counting of which requires more time, moreover, overall 43 political parties are registered for this year’s elections which is twice as many as in previous years, the Central Election Commission (CEC) has explained. Referring to the counting, spokesperson of the CEC Natia Ioseliani stated that ‘everything is being done in full compliance with the law.’
Georgian law enforcers have detained seven individuals for administrative offences and have launched investigations on 16 criminal cases which took place during municipal elections on October 2.