TBILISI, October 26. /TASS/. Georgia is holding its parliamentary election on Saturday.
The ruling Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia party, which has been in power since 2012, seeks its fourth victory in a row.
As many as 18 parties are taking part in the election. The four main opposition parties include the Unity - National Movement, whose backbone is ex-President Mikhail Saakashvili’s United National Movement, former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia’s Gakharia For Georgia party, the Strong Georgia coalition and the Coalition for Change. The four plan to form a coalition government if they manage to garner more seats in total than the Georgian Dream party.
The Alliance of Patriots, which promotes traditional values and calls for dialogue with Russia, is also expected to pass the five percent threshold to enter parliament.
The situation in the country remains generally calm, which is what Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has repeatedly said. However, the ruling party said that attempts to create instability could be made on the day after the election, October 27. A few days before the vote, the Georgian government approved a list of strategic facilities, which now includes the Central Election Commission’s building. Blockading these sites is punishable by law.
This will be the first Georgian election involving the use of electronic ballot processing. As many as 74% of polling stations in the country have been equipped with electronic ballot boxes, which make it possible to count ballots with just the click of a button and reduce the risk of ballot rigging.
As many as 3,111 polling stations will open their doors to a total of 3.5 mln voters in Georgia and other countries. The election will run from 8:00 a.m. local time (4:00 a.m. GMT) to 8:00 p.m. (4:00 p.m. GMT). The Central Election Commission is expected to announce the first results of the vote within two hours after polling stations close.