TBILISI, November 17 – Georgia’s ruling party has launched a full rewrite of the country’s election code in a move that could reshape how millions of citizens cast their votes. The biggest change would require Georgian voters living abroad to travel back to Georgia in order to vote in parliamentary elections. Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili … Read more
TBILISI, October 16 – Georgia’s ruling party Georgian Dream scored an overwhelming victory in the Tbilisi City Council elections held on October 4, according to final results published Thursday by the Central Election Commission (CEC). Out of roughly 1 million registered voters, a total of 325,061 people cast their ballots, representing a turnout of about … Read more
TBILISI, October 10 – Former Defense Minister Bacho Akhalaia, one of the most controversial figures from ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili’s government, spoke defiantly to reporters after being questioned Friday at the Criminal Police Department in Tbilisi. Akhalaia, who was summoned for questioning on Thursday in connection with an unspecified criminal investigation, dismissed the process as a … Read more
TBILISI, October 7 – Tbilisi’s City Court has ordered pre-trial detention for five opposition figures accused of orchestrating violence during the October 4 protest in the Georgian capital, which authorities describe as an attempted “coup.” Those detained include opera singer and activist Paata Burchuladze, former chief prosecutor Murtaz Zodelava, opposition politicians Irakli Nadiradze, Paata Manjgaladze, … Read more
TBILISI, October 7 – Famed Georgian opera singer turned activist Paata Burchuladze, one of the main figures detained over the failed October 4 “peaceful revolution,” told a Tbilisi court Tuesday that he was trying to prevent violence, not incite it. Burchuladze, founder of the “Rustaveli Avenue” movement, said that during the unrest near the presidential … Read more
TBILISI, October 5 – Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze has secured a decisive victory in Georgia’s local elections, winning 71.6% of the vote according to preliminary results released by the Central Election Commission (CEC). With 581 out of 584 polling stations counted, covering 99.5% of the city’s precincts, Kaladze, the candidate of the ruling Georgian Dream … Read more
TBILISI, October 3 – With just two days to go before Georgia’s local elections, mayoral candidates in Tbilisi went head-to-head in a fiery televised debate Thursday night that showcased the country’s deep political divides. The debate, broadcast on the public broadcaster’s Channel 1, brought together nine registered candidates, including incumbent mayor and ruling Georgian Dream … Read more
TBILISI, October 3 – Georgia is set to hold nationwide local elections on October 4, with authorities pledging transparency, security, and swift results through the broadest use yet of electronic voting technology. According to Central Election Commission (CEC) chair Giorgi Kalandarishvili, 3,061 polling stations will open across the country, including 2,284 equipped with electronic ballot … Read more
TBILISI, September 27 – Georgia’s election administration has completed the country’s unified voter list ahead of the crucial October 4 municipal elections, Central Election Commission (CEC) spokesperson Natia Ioseliani announced Friday. According to the CEC, a total of 3,513,818 citizens are eligible to vote. Of these, 3,130,348 will cast ballots using electronic technologies, while 777 … Read more
TBILISI, September 24 – One of Georgia’s oldest and most trusted legal watchdogs says it won’t monitor this year’s local elections, marking the first time in its 31-year history it has refused to do so. The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) announced Wednesday it will not dispatch observers to monitor the October 4 municipal elections, … Read more