Georgia: The opposition does not accept the election results

The Georgian opposition refuses to accept the results of Saturday’s parliamentary elections, which show a victory for the pro-Russian ruling party Georgian Dream with 70% of the vote counted.

Opposition leader Tina Bokuchava, head of the pro-European United National Movement, claimed that the electoral commission “did the dirty work of billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili.”

Ivanishvili, 68, the founder and honorary chairman of the pro-Russian ruling party, was quick to celebrate the Georgian Dream’s victory in the election shortly after polls closed at polling stations.

The 41-year-old Bokuchava announced that a plan of action for the opposition forces would be drawn up in the coming hours.

The pro-Western opposition coalition, the Coalition for Change, announced that it does not accept the results, calling it a “stolen election”. “This is a constitutional coup and abuse of power,” Coalition for Change leader Nika Gvaramia said at a press conference. Gvaramia denounced electoral fraud with the help of technology, but did not substantiate her claim.

The turnout in yesterday’s parliamentary elections stood at 59 percent, up from 56 percent in the 2020 elections.

As a reminder, the ruling Georgian Dream party got 53% of the vote. The coalition of four pro-European opposition parties garnered 38.28%.

The Georgian Dream said it would secure about 90 of the 150 seats in parliament, according to the Russian news agency RIA.

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