Government and opposition claim victory

Who won the landmark parliamentary election in Georgia? The first partial results show the pro-Russian government party in the lead, but the pro-European opposition also claims victory.

After the parliamentary election in Georgia, which was seen as a decisive decision, both the government and the opposition claimed victory. Billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili declared the Georgian Dream ruling party he founded as the election winner. The opposition Coalition for Change, however, said that the previous opposition had worked together to win a parliamentary majority.

The electoral commission announced in the evening that after counting the votes in 70 percent of the electoral districts, the Georgian Dream party was at 53 percent, the pro-European opposition alliance at 38.28 percent. However, several projections had previously seen the opposition alliance in the lead, and pro-Western President Salome Zurabishvili also spoke of a victory for the opposition.

Orban congratulates pro-Russian people Governing party

Despite the ongoing counting, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has already congratulated the ruling Georgian Dream party. Prime Minister Iraqi Kobachidze's party had achieved an overwhelming victory, Orban wrote in the short message service X. “The people of Georgia know what is best for their country and they made their voices heard today!”

The Georgian Dream party, which has been in power for twelve years, wants to expand relations with Russia, while the opposition is seeking to join the European Union. Democratic principles are also at stake in the parliamentary elections. The founder of Georgian Dream, the billionaire and former Prime Minister Ivanishvili, had announced that if his party won the election, it would ban opposition parties.

Georgia is a candidate for EU membership, but the process is on hold due to controversial laws. That's why pro-Western forces in particular spoke in advance of a fateful choice for the country that was at a crossroads.

President reports violence at polling stations

Already in the afternoon, the pro-European President Zurabishvili announced that there had been violent clashes during the parliamentary elections. “I would like to draw attention to the deeply disturbing incidents of violence at various polling stations,” she said. Videos on online networks showed confrontations at several polling stations.

According to the Central Election Commission, there was an attempted manipulation in the small town of Marneuli in the southeast of the country. A man threw in several ballot papers at a polling station and voting was then interrupted. The results at the polling station would not be counted, it was said. The opposition and the government blamed each other for the incident.

“They bully voters and beat observers”

Election incidents were also reported online from other Georgian locations. The Young Lawyers Association spoke of “significant election violations.” The opposition parties shared footage online of what appeared to be clogged ballot boxes in the southeastern village of Sadachlo.

“They are stuffing ballot boxes, harassing voters and beating observers,” said Tina Bokutschawa, head of the largest opposition United National Movement party. Referring to the powerful billionaire Ivanishvili, she declared: “Bidzina Ivanishvili's thugs are desperately trying to cling to power and are ready to do anything to undermine the electoral process.”