Voting begins in pivotal elections for Georgia
Polling stations have opened in Georgia for parliamentary elections considered crucial for the future of the country.
The former Soviet republic, with a population of nearly 4 million, is divided between a pro-European opposition and a ruling party accused of pro-Russian authoritarianism. Brussels has warned that the outcome of the vote will determine the chances of EU membership for Georgia.
Recent polls indicate that an alliance of opposition parties could defeat the ruling Georgian Dream, the conservative party of billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili. Among the opposition parties is the United National Movement of imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili.
Georgian Dream, in power since 2012, is accused of having embarked on a spiral towards the establishment of a pro-Russian authoritarian regime and of distancing Georgia from the West.
Judicial reforms
The EU granted Georgia official candidate status in December 2023 but said the country would have to carry out reforms to its judicial and electoral systems, increase press freedom and limit the power of oligarchs before accession negotiations could be officially launched.
In the event of victory, the opposition alliance has promised electoral and judicial reforms, as well as repealing laws recently enacted that have been criticised by the EU. It plans to form a coalition government, pass these reforms and organise a new election within a year to better reflect the will of the electorate.
Georgia, long considered a democratic bubble in the former USSR, is regularly shaken by demonstrations and is still scarred by a brief war with Russia in 2008. At the end of the war, Russia installed military bases in two separatist regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and recognised their unilateral declaration of independence.
The ruling party campaigned as the only party capable of preventing the “Ukrainisation” of Georgia.
The vote is a proportional ballot for the renewal of the 150 seats in Parliament. It will be monitored by observers from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
“If the party in power tries to stay in power regardless of the outcome of the elections, there is a risk of post-election unrest,” said Gela Vasadzé of the Centre for Strategic Analysis on Georgia.
A voter casts her ballot in the country's parliamentary elections at a polling station in Tbilisi, 26 October 2024 © PHOTO GIORGI ARJEVANIDZE / AFP
Related news
