Parliamentary elections were held in Georgia on Saturday. Shortly after the polls ended, both the ruling pro-Russian Georgian Dream party and the pro-European opposition declared victory. According to commentators, these are historic elections that will determine the future of the country and determine which side of the political barrier Tbilisi will be on. Will he move towards the West or will he take another step towards Moscow?
Only after the end of the voting, political emotions in Georgia will reach their peak. We are waiting for the official election results as the preliminary results cause a lot of confusion. Competing exit polls offered starkly different predictions about the outcome of the election. According to a survey prepared for the television channel “Imedi TV”, the ruling party “Georgian Dream” is leading with 56 percent of supporters.
Two other polls, commissioned by the pro-opposition bases Formula and Mtavari Archi, show that the opposition parties together can form a majority in the 150-seat parliament.
Parliamentary elections in Georgia PAP/EPA/DAVID MDZINARISHVILI
Both sides declare victory
– It is rare for a party to achieve such success in such a difficult situation. This clearly shows the talent of the Georgian people, said Bidzina Ivanishvili, former prime minister and founder of the Georgian Dream party, minutes after the voting ended. “I assure you that our country will achieve great success this year,” he added. Fireworks were set off in front of the headquarters of the party.
The opposition also declared victory, and its representatives claim that they are on the way to gaining a parliamentary majority. Salome Zurabishvili, the pro-Western president of the Republic of the West, wrote on Platform X, “European Georgia wins with 52 percent of the vote, despite efforts to rig the election and without taking into account the votes of the diaspora.”
Georgia after the elections Irakli Gedenidze/Forum
According to a poll prepared for Formula station, “Georgian Dream” will be the largest party, but the four main opposition parties will have a combined majority (83 seats) in the 150-seat parliament.
Reuters reports that Georgia's four main opposition parties are deeply divided, and it is unclear whether they will be able to reach an agreement and form a government together.
The Central Election Commission is scheduled to announce the official partial results of the election around 10:00 PM (in Poland). The results do not include votes cast abroad.
Main photo: Irakli Gedenidze/Forum
