UNM mayoral candidate Melia, ruling party members clash at polling station in Tbilisi [VIDEO]
Ruling party MP Davituliani called on Melia to leave the polling station territory, saying that ‘he has lost the elections.’ Photo: IPN.
Tweet 
Share
Tbilisi mayor candidate from the United National Movement (UNM) Nika Melia and the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party members Beka Davituliani and Giorgi Amilakhvari have clashed at the polling station in Vazisubani district in Tbilisi earlier today due to a power outage at the spot.
Melia, who arrived at Vazisubani district after the power outage, was beaten while giving an interview.
During a verbal and physical confrontation, he stated that ‘electricity was deliberately cut off on the spot.’
Ruling party MP Davituliani called on Melia to leave the polling station territory, saying that ‘he has lost the elections.’
The ruling party head Irakli Kobakhidze has responded to the incident and said that ‘wherever is Melia, there is a provocation.’
I call on everyone, including our supporters, not to be provoked and not to react unhealthily to such provocations,” Kobakhidze said.
A physical confrontation took place in Georgian Zugdidi municipality as well earlier today where the GD mayoral candidate Mamuka Tsotseria accused the UNM supporters of staging provocations resulting in five individuals being arrested on the spot.
Georgia is holding municipal run-offs today in 20 of 64 election constituencies, including the five large cities of Georgia - Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Rustavi, Batumi and Poti where a total of 2,088,722 voters are eligible to participate.
A total of 1,830 polling stations are open nationwide in Georgia.
Head of the Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA) Nika Simonishvili has called on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to timely investigate the attacks on journalists and observers of GYLA.
MP Ani Tsitlidze from the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party has been escorted by the police out of Zugdidi’s 21st polling station. The incident reportedly took place after the UNM’s election commission member, two journalists, and an NGO representative got kicked out of the station.
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.
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.
Police have detained several people amid physical confrontations at Zugdidi electoral district. Zugdidi mayoral candidate from the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party Mamuka Tsotseria accused the United National Movement (UNM) activists of staging provocations.
Eight cases of alleged violations and breaking of law are under investigation by the interior ministry, with one individual arrested, as clashes at or outside polling stations across Georgia have been reported on municipal runoff day.
Both Tbilisi mayoral candidates Kakha Kaladze and Nika Melia from the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and the United National Movement (UNM) celebrate the victory in the municipal election run-offs ahead of the official announcement of the results.
An investigation is underway into the case of a physical assault of Nika Melia, Tbilisi mayor candidate from the opposition United National Movement (UNM) party, to find out the attacker.
Chairman of the United National Movement (UNM) Nika Melia, who has now officially lost the Tbilisi mayoral elections to the ruling Georgian Dream’s (GD) Kakha Kaladze in yesterday's run-off elections, has called the municipal elections ‘void,’ and asked his supporters to gather near the parliament this evening to hear the united opposition’s action plan.