Ex-pm, For Georgia leader Gakharia: ‘These elections were neither free, nor fair’
Casting his ballot on October 30 Giorgi Gakharia told journalists he voted ‘for Georgia,’ but not for any candidate. Photo: PM's press office archive
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Former Georgian prime minister Giorgi Gakharia, who now chairs the opposition For Georgia party, says the October 30 municipal run-offs were ‘neither free, nor fair’.
Giorgi Gakharia has tweeted:
These elections were neither free, nor fair. We need to seriously think about the use of money and abuse of administrative resources in the elections. Political neutrality of public sector has to be guaranteed. Otherwise, voting risks becoming a meaningless show.#Gvote2021
— Giorgi Gakharia (@GakhariaGiorgi) October 31, 2021
Gakharia, who left the prime minister’s post and the ruling Georgian Dream party earlier this year, also ran for Tbilisi mayor in the first round of the municipal elections on October 2 but ended the race third.
Municipal run-offs were held in 20 of 64 election constituencies, including all five big cities of Georgia - Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Rustavi, Batumi and Poti.
The official results of the 2021 municipal election run-offs in Georgia show that the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) mayoral candidates have won in 19 municipalities, while the opposition contender has won in just one.
Incumbent Tbilisi mayor and the ruling party candidate Kakha Kaladze took 55.6% of the votes over the UNM’s Nika Melia, while the UNM candidate Giorgi Kharchilava won in Tsalenjikha with 51.11% over the GD’s Goga Gulordava. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge
Claiming that the election results were fabricated, Georgian opposition leaders gathered in front of the parliament building in Tbilisi with their supporters to protest the results of the October 30 run-offs.
They announced rallies in the cities of Batumi, Kutaisi, and Zugdidi, in addition to the massive demonstration in Tbilisi scheduled for November 7.
Georgian opposition leaders have gathered with their supporters in front of the parliament building in Tbilisi to protest the results of the October 30 run-off municipal elections. The opposition, claiming that the election results were fabricated, announced rallies in the cities of Batumi, Kutaisi, and Zugdidi, in addition to the massive demonstration in Tbilisi scheduled for November 7.
A number of ruling party members have reacted to the results of the municipal election run-offs earlier today which have ended with a victory for the Georgian Dream party mayoral candidates in 19 of 20 municipalities.
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.
OSCE/ODIHR and European Parliament (EP) observation missions have assessed Georgian municipal election run-offs held yesterday, stating that the race ‘was generally competitive and organized professionally’, but increasing polarization and negative rhetoric, as well as allegations of voter intimidation and the ‘continuing advantage of incumbency, demonstrated the need for further reforms.
The opposition has won the majority in city assemblies in seven out of 64 municipalities – Batumi, Zugdidi, Martvili, Chkhorotsku, Tsalenjikha, Rustavi and Senaki. GD head Irakli Kobakhidze stated that ‘the majority will be formed on the basis of negotiations with the members of the city councils,’ in municipalities where GD lost the majority, noting that ‘work on the issue has already started successfully.’
More members of opposition are renouncing their MP mandates following the municipal run-offs of October 30 in which the ruling party candidates won the mayoral race in 19 of 20 contested municipalities, including in Tbilisi.
The Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC) will recount the votes of 140 district election commissions, in line with recent legal changes which oblige the CEC to recount a certain number of votes to verify their validity.