PM Garibashvili casts ballot, says he voted for ‘peaceful development’
Garibashvili arrived at the polling station with his family.
Photo: Prime Minister's press office
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Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, who has cast his ballot in today’s municipal elections, said he voted for the country’s ‘peaceful development.’
PM Garibashvili, who arrived at the polling station with his family, asked the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) supporters to cast their ballots as well.
I believe that our people will once again make a wise decision and vote for the country’s stability, instead of chaos, disturbance, confrontation, and polarisation, all of which comes from the destructive opposition, he added.
Garibashvili noted that the GD received 47% of the total votes in the proportional part of the first round of elections, which ‘ends all speculations’ regarding the possibility of early parliamentary elections in 2022.
Garibashvili also commented on the incidents which took place earlier today in Zugdidi electoral district, saying that notwithstanding the political affiliations, ‘everyone will be held accountable before the law.’
Regarding the possible obstruction of ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili’s transfer to prison, Garibashvili asserted that the State Security Service prevented a crime.
Garibashvili further maintained that the penitentiary system is responsible for every inmate’s healthcare, and ‘Saakashvili will not be privileged’.
A total of 825,129 voters (39.5 per cent of eligible voters) have cast their ballots in the Georgian municipal run-offs as of 5 p.m. today.
The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party head Irakli Kobakhidze has stated that the GD is winning in 18 out of 20 municipalities, saying that in the remaining two municipalities the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party is close to 50% threshold.
Transparency International (TI) Georgia says that its observers have recorded 50 minor and serious violations during today’s municipal election run-offs, as of 13:30.
Five people have been detained for physical assault near polling station No. 20 in the western Georgian town of Zugdidi, the Interior Ministry reports. The ministry representative Ketevan Kovziashvili has informed the public of the activities aimed to ensure safe and peaceful environment during the municipal run-offs.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, who has cast her ballot in today’s municipal run-offs, said she hopes polarisation will end in Georgia.
Ruling Georgian Dream party chair Irakli Kobakhide, who has cast his ballot in today’s municipal run-offs, said the choice is ‘very simple’ between the two political forces – the Georgian Dream and the opposition United National Movement.
The second round of municipal elections will take place in Georgia tomorrow, including in all big cities of the country, amid a polarized political environment and continued rivalry between the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and the main opposition, the United National Movement. The GD claims they will ‘finally defeat and end the UNM’ in the race, describing it ‘as an evil force’ which has been hampering development for 18 years, while the UNM still hopes the run-offs will lead to snap parliamentary elections ‘and the changing of the GD government.’
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili says that former president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili will neither be released early from prison, nor will he be transferred to Ukraine. "This will never take place. If the government allows any of these scenarios to happen, it will be disrespectful to the rule of law,” Garibashvili says. Saakashvili, who is a citizen of Ukraine and currently chairs the Executive Committee of the Ukrainian National Reform Council, was arrested in Tbilisi on October 1, a day before the Georgian municipal elections.
The Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC) says that 97 complaints have been presented on voting procedures by 40 observers and 57 representatives of political parties in today’s municipal election run-offs.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has said that according to the preliminary results, the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party has won the run-off municipal elections in all municipalities. After the announcement of exit poll results commissioned by Imedi TV, Garibashvili congratulated incumbent Tbilisi mayor Kakha Kaladze and other GD candidates on winning the mayoral run-offs.