According to Nona Kurdovanidze of the non-governmental “Young Lawyers Association”, the election process of October 26 began with significant violations.
At 06:45, as she stated in the briefing some of the areas that GYLA would be monitoring were not open for preparation.
“At some election precincts in Nadzaladevi and Krtsanisi districts, the necessary procedures to open the precinct were already underway by 06:45 am. In other places, the electronic devices had been activated. During this time, both the non-performance of duties and the arbitrarily changing of roles were revealed. In one case, a secretary did not show up, while in another, the chairman had left the district, and has not returned since. GYLA observers claim that several precincts opened late, by 08:00. This delayed the voting process. During the voting, both machine malfunctions as well as violations of vote secrecy were revealed. In particular: the registrar in Rustavi district shows the voter a sheet with a circle colored in front of number 41 and instructs them to color their ballot the same way.
The registrars used the verification machine incorrectly and had significant problems with the functioning of the electronic devices. The registrars are carrying ID cards incorrectly and have to manually enter the data. In the 3rd Precinct in Ninotsminda the voter went to the registrar, and the machine gave him a special signal. The other machine didn’t give him a similar signal. GYLA observers claim that in the 35th Precinct of Marneuli a person believed to be representative of the “Georgian Dream”, voted twice. In the 13th precincts in Gldani and Poti, the 41st Isni Precinct, the 5th Tsalenjikha Precinct, the 13th Gldani Precinct, the 13th Poti Precinct, two ballots were delivered to voters. In the 27th precinct in Didub district, behind the registrars stood a person who had the right to be there. They entered the personal data of the voter. After a referral to GYLA, the violation was eliminated.
The GYLA observed was hampered in several ways. The GYLA observer, in particular, was not allowed to enter the 66th Precinct in Vaki District and was asked to put a wet stamp on the certificate of the observer. After contacting the District Election Commission he was allowed into the precinct. In the 21st Krtsanisi district, the observer could not observe and move around freely. In the third district Lagodekhi the observer is not allowed to record anything in the record book. In the 3rd district, the observer was not allowed to take photos of the electronic device’s zero receipt. In the 55th Precinct in Samgori, an observer was forced to take part in a lottery for people who followed the mobile ballot box. In the 49th Precinct in Kutaisi District, the Chairman of the Commission addressed the GYLA Observer with aggression and refused to allow him to observe freely. The observer was then expelled from the Precinct.
As for violations on the perimeter of the polling station, the trend from previous years continues. Coordinators are still on the outer perimeter of the building and people gather within 100 meters of the building. During the voting process GYLA revealed the facts about equipment malfunctions and violations of vote secrecy.
According to information from the GYLA observer, in a 25 meter radius around the 21st precinct of Fonichala is the campaign material for the “Georgian Dream”. The GYLA’s observer contacted the Ministry of Internal Affairs for a response. The violation was not totally eliminated. A similar case occurred in the first district Chokhatauri.
In overseas districts, the majority of violations were found. In Finland, voting was done on the day, while in Bratislava, ballot boxes were sealed before the vote. Vilnius, Munich and Madrid sites opened late.
The “Georgian Dream Party” has installed video cameras at the precincts. By 10:00 am, GYLA observers had recorded 15 notes, 11 complaints to the Precinct Election Commission and 4 complaints to the District Election Commission.
GYLA monitors the parliamentary election of October 26, 2024 through 650 observers in 55 municipalities, 64 electoral district and 15 foreign countries. GYLA’s election mission covers over 1500 polling booths, or about half of all polling booths.
On the day of elections, a hotline (577 07 05 67) is available at the central headquarters. This number allows citizens to consult about election procedures and report violations. You can also send information about violations via e-mail: [email protected]”, Nona Kurdovanidze said.
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