The United States is calling for an investigation into reports of election irregularities in Georgia. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated this according to Reuters. The top representatives of the European Union have already called for an investigation into the alleged irregularities during Saturday’s parliamentary elections in Georgia.
According to the Central Election Commission, the current ruling Georgian Dream party won the election, which the opposition and the West say leads an authoritarian policy and is inspired by Russia. The opposition refuses to recognize the election results, and President Salome Zourabišvili, who supports the opposition parties, takes the same position.
The AP agency informs that the president, along with representatives of the opposition, called on the residents of the South Caucasus country to come to the main street in the metropolis of Tbilisi on Monday evening to protest the election results. She described the results as “a complete falsification, a complete theft of your votes”.
Election observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, including MEP Markéta Gregorová for the Pirates, pointed out that there were cases of vote-buying and intimidation during the election, and that voting took place in a tense and hateful atmosphere. There were also reported cases of fights at polling stations or multiple voting. Zurabishvili called on Georgians to protest the election results tonight in the center of the capital Tbilisi, writes Reuters.
Georgia has long been among the post-Soviet countries with the strongest Western orientation. However, its relations with the West cooled significantly after the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year. The Georgian government refused to impose anti-Russian sanctions, and the rhetoric of the Georgian Dream became increasingly pro-Russian. Both the opposition and the West accuse the ruling party of introducing authoritarian policies in the style of the current Russian regime. About 3.7 million people live in Georgia and it is a candidate for EU membership, but the twenty-seventh country has suspended the accession process due to the government’s actions.