Georgia launches vote recount amid election fraud accusations
The Electoral Commission of Georgia announced that it will begin a vote recount on Tuesday in 14% of polling stations, following accusations from the pro-European opposition that the ruling Georgian Dream party engaged in fraud and “stole” the legislative elections, according to AFP.
Georgian authorities “will recount votes in five polling stations from each constituency,” stated a press release from the commission.
The EU and the US have requested that authorities in Tbilisi launch investigations into alleged irregularities.
Standing as a dissenting voice within the EU, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in Georgia on Monday evening to express his support for the Georgian government against these accusations.
In response to a call from the opposition and the country’s president, Salome Zurabishvili, tens of thousands of Georgians peacefully protested on Monday evening, contesting the results of the legislative elections, which have been won by the ruling party since 2012.
The Georgian Dream party faces accusations from opponents of steering the country toward Moscow rather than the EU.
President Salome Zurabishvili condemned the use of “sophisticated fraud methods,” which, in her view, resemble those practised in Russia.
“It’s very difficult to accuse a government,” Zurabishvili stated, “but the methods used are distinctly Russian.”
Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed these accusations on Monday as unfounded, along with any allegations of Russian interference in Georgia’s electoral process.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
