MOSCOW, October 4. /TASS/. The ruling party Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia will certainly gained over 80% of the vote in the municipal elections, while the pro-Western opposition attempted to organize unrest in the capital.
Georgian authorities have called the opposition rally an attempted coup orchestrated by foreign agents. Police have opened a criminal case.
TASS has compiled the election highlights.
Voting progress and early returns
- Polling stations for local government elections in Georgia closed at 8:00 p.m. local time (7:00 p.m. Moscow time, GMT +3). According to the Central Election Commission, the turnout as of 5:00 p.m. (4:00 p.m. Moscow time, GMT +3) was 33.5%. After more than 74% of the ballots have been processed, the ruling party has received over 80%. It is followed by the opposition party Strong Georgia (6.8%) and Gakharia for Georgia (3.8%).
- Georgian Prime Minister Irakly Kobakhidze stated that the ruling party's candidates are winning a landslide victory with over 70% of the vote in all municipalities across the country.
- Kakha Kaladze, the candidate for Tbilisi’s mayor from the ruling party Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia, has received 71.588% of the vote after 99.4% of the ballots have been processed.
- Irakly Kupradze, the mayoral candidate from the parties Strong Georgia and Gakharia for Georgia, is in second place with 12.43% of the vote. Iago Khvichia, the representative of the libertarian party Girchi, rounds out the top three with 7.5%.
- Georgian Central Election Commission spokesperson Natia Ioseliani stated that the voting was generally peaceful and professional, and that a handful of incidents would not affect the voting process.
- Belarusian observers from the Central Election Commission noted a calm atmosphere during the municipal elections in Georgia.
Opposition rally
- The opposition announced it would hold a rally in Tbilisi to protest the elections, calling on its supporters to gather at 4:00 p.m. (3:00 PM Moscow time, GMT +3) outside the parliament building on Rustaveli Avenue in central Tbilisi.
- The Ministry of Internal Affairs announced the mobilization of police in connection with the planned rally and asked the organizers to respect the law.
- Riot control police were deployed in the courtyard of the Georgian Parliament in Tbilisi.
Rioting
- After the rally began, opposition protesters broke into the courtyard of the presidential palace on Atoneli Street. A scuffle broke out between protesters and police, who used pepper spray.
- Near the presidential palace, protesters set fire to furniture in nearby cafes, threw stones, and launched fireworks at police.
- In response, special forces began using water cannon against demonstrators.
- Fourteen police officers were injured, Deputy Interior Minister Alexander Darakhvelidze announced at a briefing.
- Opposition protesters attacked a film crew from Georgian TV Imedi, the channel said in a statement. Its reporter and cameraman were injured. The channel's equipment was damaged.
Authorities’ response
- Those who stormed the presidential palace in Tbilisi committed a criminal offense and will be brought to justice, Georgian Prime Minister Irakly Kobakhidze announced at a news briefing. The foreign agents in Georgia who triggered and orchestrated the unrest in Tbilisi will be completely neutralized; they will no longer be allowed to participate in Georgian politics, he vowed. Kobakhidze blamed the EU ambassador to Tbilisi, Pawel Herczynski, saying he "bears special responsibility" for the unrest.
- The opposition’s protest in the capital is an attempt to stage a coup d'·tat, according to Kakha Kaladze, Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia party and Tbilisi Mayor.
- The Georgian Interior Ministry has opened a criminal case under four articles in connection with the unrest in Tbilisi, including calls for the overthrow of the government and organizing group violence.