Elections

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2024 Georgian Parliamentary Elections

Who’s who in Georgia’s parliamentary elections?

by Shota Kincha

•13 min read

Georgians will go to the polls on 26 October in crucial parliamentary elections. Unlike in previous years, this election will be held under a fully proportional system. This means parties will be allocated a percentage of parliament’s 150 seats based entirely on the percentage of votes they receive nationwide, doing away with elections for individual MPs in single-seat constituencies. However, despite calls from many smaller parties, and despite previously promising the opposite, the ruling

Ramzan Kadyrov with his family at the polling station. Screengrab from Telegram.

Chechnya

Little change after regional elections across North Caucasus

by Luiza Mchedlishvili

•2 min read

The United Russia party of President Vladimir Putin has won parliamentary majorities in two North Caucasus republics following elections which saw all current regional MPs keep their seats. Voting began on 6 September for local elections throughout Russia, including in several parts of the North Caucasus. These included the election of MPs to the parliaments of Kabarda-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia. Separately, the heads of Kabarda-Balkaria and Ingushetia were elected by the local

Members of parliament present during the vote. Screengrab: Georgian Parliament/YouTube.

Democracy

Georgian Dream ‘fraudulently’ overturned electoral code veto

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•4 min read

The ruling Georgian Dream party appears to have fraudulently overturned a presidential veto on controversial amendments to Georgia’s electoral code, by falsely claiming that more MPs had voted than were present in the parliamentary session. The veto was overturned and amendments to Georgia’s electoral code were adopted in an extraordinary session of parliament held on 3 July, with the parliament reporting 78 votes in favour and 14 against. However, opposition Girchi MP Aleksandre Rakviashvil

Giorgi Khakhubia, the Georgian Dream candidate for Poti, Senaki, and Khobi, addresses supporters. Photo: Giorgi Khakhubia/Facebook.

Democracy

Georgian Dream triumphs in by-election after running practically unopposed

by Tata Shoshiashvili

•2 min read

The ruling Georgian Dream Party have won a by-election in the Poti, Senaki, and Khobi constituency after all but one minor opposition party failed to field candidates. According to preliminary results, Georgian Dream’s Giorgi Khakhubia won 95% of the vote in Saturday’s parliamentary by-election. The only other candidate was from Free Georgia, a minor opposition party headed by former MP Kakha Kukava. The election was called after the incumbent, Georgian Dream MP Irakli Khakhubia, passed away

Abkhazia

Abkhazian parliamentary elections inconclusive

by OC Media

•6 min read

Parliamentary elections in Abkhazia over the weekend have ended inconclusively, with the final makeup of the legislature expected to take shape after runoffs in around half of districts later this month. On 12 March, Abkhazia voted for the seventh convocation of the 35-seat parliament. The results of Saturday’s vote revealed only half of the makeup of the incoming parliament, where the lawmakers will face the fallout of Moscow’s diminished financial support to the region following the finan

Armenia

Armenia’s ruling party wins big in largest municipal elections since 2016

by Ani Avetisyan

•2 min read

In the third and final round of local elections held on Sunday, Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract party won in 24 of 36 municipalities — this vote, the third in a trio of local elections held, has involved the largest number of municipalities since 2016. Commenting on the election results, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan took to Facebook with a post addressing his party’s landslide victory. Turnout among the roughly million eligible voters in the election was 42%. ‘It is obvious that our prior

Analysis

Datablog | Is it ok to cancel debts ahead of elections?

by Makhare Atchaidze

•2 min read

In the run up to several recent elections, the government, or those close to it, have announced amnesties on people’s debts or fines. But what do people think of the practice? In the lead up to the second round of the 2018 presidential elections, a charitable foundation set up by the founder of Georgian Dream announced a debt amnesty for people with loans of ₾2,000 or less. Around one-sixth of the population benefited from the programme. Similarly, in 2021, the government announced they would