2021 Georgian Local Elections

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A polling station in Tbilisi during the 2021 local elections. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Medai.

Datablog | Georgians are split on election quality

•4 min read

The holding of free and fair elections is central to democracy, yet, if elections are not considered free and fair, then polarisation and questions about their legitimacy can divide society. Polling from CRRC Georgia suggests a deep partisan divide in Georgia when it comes to views on the quality of elections in the country. Data CRRC Georgia collected before the 2021 municipal elections for ISFED and after the elections for NDI shows that supporters of the ruling party and opposition were and

A polling station in Batumi on 2 April 2022. Photo: Shota Kincha/OC Media.

2021 Georgian Local Elections

Georgian Dream edges closer to taking back the Batumi legislature

by Shota Kincha

•6 min read

Georgian Dream have won a byelection for the Batumi City Council. While the council is now formally hung, a ‘neutral’ candidate is suspected to be a ruling party ally. Georgian Dream’s candidate Ramaz Jincharadze won a convincing victory in Saturday’s vote for a majoritarian council seat in Batumi, Georgia’s second-largest city and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara. The result will upset plans by opposition groups the United National Movement (UNM) and Lelo to deny the ruling

UNM member Giorgi Kirtadze holding a press-conference in Batumi. Photo via Batumelebi.

2021 Georgian Local Elections

Opposition claim fatal pressure on Batumi councillor

by Shota Kincha

•3 min read

The opposition appears to have lost their majority on the Batumi City Council after the death of a councillor, allegedly following pressure from the government. Nugzar Putkaradze died last Thursday in what his sister, who also sits on the city council, has said was a diabetic attack. The opposition United National Movement (UNM) have claimed that his blood sugar levels skyrocketed leading to his death after repeated attempts by people connected to the ruling party to make him defect. Putkara

Municipal elections in Georgia. Photo: Mariam Nikuradze/OC Media.

2021 Georgian Local Elections

Datablog | Do people think voter secrecy is respected in Georgia

by Tsisana Khundadze

•4 min read

International and local election observers often note violations of the secrecy of the ballot in Georgia, and the 2021 local elections were no exception. According to a recent study, a plurality of people think such violations could take place in Georgia, and some have heard of such cases in the past year. On the survey on election-related attitudes carried out by CRRC Georgia for ISFED, respondents were asked about a hypothetical country where a citizen’s vote was somehow revealed to a neig

2021 Georgian Local Elections

Datablog | What issues do Georgians think about when voting?

by Makhare Atchaidze

•3 min read

While voters in Georgia tend to look to personalities rather than policies in determining who they will vote for, policies also matter to a large number of people. But what issues are most important to voters? On 2 October 2021, 1.8 million voters participated in Georgia’s local elections. In Tbilisi, Kakha Kaladze won the most votes in the first round, but failed to pass the 50% + 1 threshold for winning outright in the first round. This resulted in runoff elections in a number of Georgian ci

A woman holds a rose, a symbol of the 2003 Rose Revolution, at a protest in support of Mikheil Saakashvili in Tbilisi on 9 November. Photo: Shota Kincha/OC Media.

2021 Georgian Local Elections

UNM announces ‘permanent protests’ after Tbilisi demonstration

by Shota Kincha

•4 min read

Georgia’s largest opposition party, the United National Movement, has announced permanent protests in Tbilisi until former president Mikheil Saakashvili is freed and the results of October’s municipal elections overturned. The party’s chair, Nika Melia, announced the decision at a demonstration attended by thousands of supporters on Tbilisi’s Liberty Square on Monday evening. Addressing the crowd, Melia said that protests would be held outside the Justice Ministry and other government buildi

Iza Chirgadze. Image: Screengrab from TV channel Rioni.

2021 Georgian Local Elections

After making fraud claims, Georgian election registrar goes silent

by Shota Kincha

•3 min read

A local member of the election administration in the western Georgian city of Kutaisi, responsible for checking the validity of voters, has remained silent after accusing the ruling Georgian Dream party of election fraud. She had warned that pressure on her would mount after she went public with the allegations. On 3 November, local media reported that Chirgadze has been staying outside of Kutaisi and has refused to communicate with journalists. Several opposition parties as well as the Int