Official results from the Central Election Commission show that the ruling Georgian Dream Party has a lead of 54.23% after more than 99% precincts have been counted. The total number of opposition parties who passed the 5% threshold was 37.44%. While the Georgian Dream is celebrating the victory, the opposition denies that the elections were legitimate. Observer organizations also speak of “large scale” riggings and demand an annulment of official results. OSCE/ODIHR will share its first preliminary evaluation of the elections at 15:00 Tbilisi Time today.
We have collected international reactions to the results of the election:
Viktor Orban sent his congratulations to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, and the Georgian Dream Party before the official preliminary results were announced: “Congratulations on your overwhelming victory in the parliamentary election today.” The people of Georgia have spoken out today and know what’s best for their country.
Ilham Aliyev is the President of Azerbaijan. “I warmly congratulate your country on the results of the Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia party’s victory in the parliamentary election held in Georgia. By voting, Georgians expressed their support for stability, development, and traditional values. “I believe that the election results will contribute to the overall development and prosperity of Georgia.”
Aleksey Pushkov Senator of the Russian Federation said: “There may be still unrest in Georgia but it appears that Western “regime changes” in Georgia through supporting the opposition have, simply put failed. Georgian Dream was able to win with over 54% of votes, a majority. The West’s plan aimed to turn Georgia into a semi-colony by promising it a happy, multi-gender integration into the “non-binary”, family of European nations. This did not appeal for some reason to the majority Georgian voters. Zurabishvili’s demagoguery, which is becoming more and more reminiscent of the Saakashvili years, did not appeal to the majority of Georgian voters. Saakashvili also dreamed a new pro Western revolution in Georgia. Where is it now?
Grigory Karasin is the head of the Russian Federation Council’s Committee on International Affairs. He said: “According reports from Tbilisi the parliamentary election in Georgia was held in a calm environment. Another indicator of civic activity is the high voter turnout, which was around 58%. The Georgian Dream’s 53% vote share and the entry of four other parties into the Parliament promise an active period for the country’s politics. We are confident that the election will be conducted in an orderly and civilized way. This is not only in the interests of Georgia, but also of the entire Caucasus.”
Marko Mihkelson is a member of the Estonian parliament. He said: “Georgia’s apparent falsification of election results makes it impossible to recognise their legitimacy.” By rigging an election, one can not join the European Union but end up in Russia’s embrace.
Nikol Pashinyan is the Prime Minister for Armenia. “I congratulate Irakli Kobakhidze, the Prime Minister for Georgia, and the party “Georgian Dream”, on their victory in the parliamentary election. I believe that strategic relations between Armenian and Georgia will continue to grow sustainably, for the benefit of the Armenian and Georgian brothers.
More to come…
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* 2024 Election Live Blog
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