Georgia's central election commission announced that it will recount ballots from five randomly selected polling stations in each election district after opposition parties rejected the results of the recent parliamentary election. The commission previously stated that the ruling Georgian Dream party secured victory with 53.9 percent of the votes.
The commission plans to carry out a partial recount on Tuesday, following claims from opposition parties that the weekend parliamentary election was "stolen."
US President Joe Biden joined other Western critics, expressing that he was "deeply alarmed" by the erosion of democracy in the Caucasus nation, citing "voter intimidation and coercion" as issues that tainted the election process.
Meanwhile, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban visited Tbilisi in a gesture of support for the ruling pro-Russian Georgian Dream party, despite Western concerns over the election. Pro-Western opposition parties refuse to acknowledge the results of Saturday's vote, which they allege was manipulated to benefit the ruling party. On Monday, tens of thousands of people participated in a protest rally in Tbilisi, with another anti-government demonstration planned for Tuesday evening.
In a statement, Georgia's electoral commission indicated that "district election commissions will conduct recounts of ballots from five randomly selected polling stations" in each district, representing approximately 14 percent of the total votes. According to the nearly finalized results provided by the commission, the Georgian Dream party received 53.9 percent of the votes, while a coalition of four opposition alliances garnered 37.7 percent.
On Monday, a group of prominent election monitors in Georgia revealed that they had found evidence of extensive fraud and called for the annulment of at least 15 percent of the votes cast.
Data analyst Levan Kvirkvelia stated on X that "(voting) data provides solid evidence supporting claims of ballot stuffing and miscounting," adding that "this manipulation occurred exclusively in rural areas, allowing us to conclude that the ruling party committed electoral fraud."
