Recount of mayoral election results: votes from 172 of 194 constituencies remain the same
A total of 31 votes have been lost and 53 gained in the mayoral part of the election result recount, while seven votes have been lost and five gained in the majoritarian part of the municipal run-offs. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
Tweet 
Share
The ballots of 194 polling stations in mayoral elections have been recounted, of which the results of 172 constituencies remains unchanged, while the results of 27 out of 33 polling stations in the majoritarian part have also remained the same, the Central Election Commission (CEC) head Giorgi Kalandarishvili reports.
The CEC announced that the recounting of municipal runoff results did not affect the preliminary results of the race, noting that the results of 201 constituencies have been recounted in total in Georgia.
Per the electoral reforms, a certain number of polling stations should be selected randomly within five days after the end of voting day and results recounted for verification.
Electoral reforms were initially proposed in March 2021 by the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and the opposition Citizens, and later revised in compliance with the EU-mediated agreement of April 19, which resolved a six-month political crisis after parliamentary elections in 2020.
The electoral amendments were adopted on June 29, 2021, providing changes to the structure and effectiveness of the CEC.
Vote recount became a successful experience in election process of #CEC. It contributed to the increased transparency of this process and significantly raised the trust. We issued recommendation for the DECs to recount ballots at specific PECs.
— CEC of Georgia (@cecgovge) November 1, 2021
➡️https://t.co/yzENQ8vUtv pic.twitter.com/tAtcowRqLB
In total, since the first round of elections, we have recounted a total of 812 precincts across the country. Recounting such a large number of election proceedings is a first and unprecedented case in recent [Georgian] election history,” Kalandarishvili stated.
A total of 31 votes have been lost and 53 gained in the mayoral part of the election result recount, while seven votes have been lost and five gained in the majoritarian part of the municipal run-offs.
The ruling party has won mayoral elections in 63 of 64 constituencies and gained 47% in the proportional part of the race.
However, the opposition has won the majority in seven out of 64 municipalities – Batumi, Zugdidi, Martvili, Chkhorotsku, Tsalenjikha, Rustavi and Senaki.
An interactive map put together by the Agenda.ge team shows the results of the 2021 municipal election run-offs, displaying voter turnout and other various figures, by region and city.
Overall, 1,202 foreign observers from 52 international organisations monitored the municipal run-offs on October 30 in Georgia nationwide.
The CEC says the results remain unchanged, and the process did not affect the overall results of elections.
The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party has dismissed allegations by a member of Kutaisi precinct election commission, Iza Chirgadze, that she was forced by the party to give ballot papers to unregistered voters on the election day on Saturday.
The British Embassy in Georgia has assessed the Georgian municipal elections run-offs as ‘well administered’, but pointed out issues of ‘negative rhetoric’ and ‘pressure on voters.’ The embassy agrees with the OSCE/ODIHR evaluation that the run-offs were competitive, but undermined by ‘deepening polarization.’
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.
The United States Embassy to Georgia has stated that electoral reforms made by Georgian politicians earlier this year have increased the transparency of the voting process – emphasising, however, that ‘widespread violations adversely affected the ability of citizens to vote freely’ in local self-government elections in Georgia.
The official results of the Central Election Commission (CEC) for the 2021 municipal election run-offs in Georgia show that the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party mayoral candidates have won in 19 municipalities, while the opposition United National Movement (UNM) contender has won in just one. Incumbent Tbilisi mayor and candidate Kakha Kaladze from the GD took 55.6% of the votes over the UNM’s Nika Melia, with 100% of the votes counted.
The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia has concluded its recount of votes in 201 constituencies, as part of recent electoral reforms obliging the body to recount a certain number of votes for verification, and stated that it did not affect the preliminary results of the second round of municipal elections.