Election Commission Chair says body’s “complete openness” reflected in legislative changes
He also said more than 65,000 voters would have been “deprived of their voting rights” without “appropriate support” from members of the CEC, and noted the Commission had updated 30,000 data based on information provided by the relevant agencies and seven additional precincts had been established to “provide necessary services within the legal framework”. Photo: CEC Facebook page
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Giorgi Kalandarishvili, the Chair of the Central Election Commission of Georgia, on Wednesday said “transparent and public activity” represented one of the prerequisites for free elections, and highlighted the institution’s “complete openness”, which he said was reflected in the country's legislative changes and measures that met “European and international standards”.
Kalandarishvili’s comments followed a statement by Matthew Miller, the Spokesperson for the United States Department of State, who on Tuesday said the US “want[ed] to see there be free and fair elections in Georgia, and we’ll be closely monitoring in the days ahead”, in response to a question regarding concerns raised by Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili about the possibility that the ruling Georgian Dream party might “rig” the parliamentary elections scheduled for later this month.
The Election Commission Chair said the institution had declared “full openness not only in terms of accessibility to activities, but also in order to ensure an inclusive process”.
This is expressed by the creation of appropriate work platforms, legislative changes, measures that meet European and international standards and serve to ensure that the voting day is administered according to international standards”, he added.
He noted a statement made by Robin Dunnigan, the US Ambassador to the country, who earlier this month commented the CEC and its staff in an interview with local media and described them as “dedicated professionals and technical experts.
Kalandarishvili also mentioned an interim report from the Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, and noted it emphasised “technical and professional readiness, transparency, openness” of the institution as well as the steps taken by the body to make the “election process inclusive, transparent and accessible”.
When asked about a lack of polling stations in Strasbourg for Georgian citizens abroad to participate in the upcoming elections and a confusion surrounding consular registration for immigrants, Kalandarishvili called on “all interested parties” to “avoid misleading voters” residing in other countries.
He also said more than 65,000 voters would have been “deprived of their voting rights” without “appropriate support” from members of the CEC, and noted the Commission had updated 30,000 data based on information provided by the relevant agencies and seven additional precincts had been established to “provide necessary services within the legal framework”.