TBILISI — Thousands of Georgians gathered outside parliament on Monday night to protest against what the president claims was a ‘rigged’ parliamentary election with the help of Russia.
“You did not lose the election,” President Salome Zourabichvili told the demonstrators who waved Georgian and European Union flags. “They stole your vote and tried to steal your future, but no one has the right to do that and you will not let anyone do that!”
Zourabichvili, a mostly ceremonial president, told the crowd that she would defend the country’s path toward Europe against actions by the ruling Georgian Dream.
“We have no alternative, and nothing else we want to leave this country for the next generations,” she said. She did not provide specific details or present evidence of Russia’s involvement in vote theft.
The rally underlined tensions in the country, which lies between Russia and Turkey and where Georgian Dream has become increasingly authoritarian and tilted toward Moscow.
However, it ended peacefully after several hours and there were no clear plans for further actions.
Giorgi Vashadze, leader of United National Movement coalition, said the opposition won’t take part in any talks with the government and will push for a new vote under international supervision.
“We are not going to enter this parliament. We refuse all mandates,” he said. “We are not going to enter into any negotiations. We are going to fight until victory and we promise you, we will definitely win together.”
The US and the European Union have urged full investigations of the result of Saturday’s election.
“Georgians, like all Europeans, must be masters of their own destiny,” said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
US officials have also called on Georgia to repeal authoritarian legislation, address electoral deficiencies and move Georgia towards Europe.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the Georgian elections were “shaped by the ruling party’s policies, including misuse of public resources, vote buying and voter intimidation.”
“We need to have the firm support of our European partners, of our American partners,” Zourabichvili said, adding that it was in the interests of “a powerful Europe” to be present in the Caucasus and for the region to be stable.
The Central Election Commission said Georgian Dream received 54.8% of the vote with almost all ballots counted.
The party — established by Bidzina Ivanishvili, a shadowy billionaire who made his fortune in Russia — has adopted laws similar to those used by the Kremlin to crack down on freedom of speech and LGBTQ+ rights.
The Kremlin has rejected the accusations of interference, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claiming instead that it was the West that had tried to influence the vote.
Asked about Zourabichvili’s call for Georgians to join protests, Peskov described it as an attempt to destabilize the country.
Parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili, a member of Georgian Dream, also accused the president of creating “a coup scenario” that goes “against the constitutional order and democratic elections.”
The EU suspended Georgia’s membership application process indefinitely because of a Russian-style “foreign influence law” passed in June.
Many Georgians viewed Saturday’s vote as a pivotal referendum on the opportunity to join the EU.
The election campaign in the nation of 3.7 million people, which borders Russia, was marked by a bitter fight for votes and allegations of a smear campaign.
European observers said the election took place in a “divisive” environment marked by intimidation and instances of vote-buying, double voting and physical violence.
During the campaign, Georgian Dream used “anti-Western and hostile rhetoric, promoted Russian misinformation, manipulations, and conspiracy theories,” said Antonio López-Istúriz White, head of the European Parliament monitoring delegation.
Election observers said instances of intimidation and other violations were particularly noticeable in rural areas.
Georgian Dream scored its highest share of the vote — almost 90% — in the Javakheti region of southern Georgia. In the capital it received no more than 44% in any district.
Hungary’s Victor Orbán, who was the first foreign leader to congratulate Georgian Dream, has arrived Monday on a two-day visit to Georgia.
Orbán is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest partner within the EU and Europe’s longest-serving leader.
He currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU, which often is the bloc’s global bullhorn and which Orbán has used in ways that highlight internal divisions.
His visit to Georgia will be seen as contentious by the EU, which has called on Georgian authorities “to fulfil their duty to swiftly, transparently and independently investigate” alleged vote rigging.
Georgian President Zourabichvili has said Orbán is a “special friend” of Georgian Dream and dismissed his visit as a “political play.” — Euronews