Abashidze’s Party Improves Standing, but Still Fails to Clear Threshold

CEC chief says it unclear whether any other party, apart from the ruling National Movement, will clear 7% threshold.

With 85% of the votes counted, Adjarian leader Aslan Abashidze’s party is failing to clear the 7% threshold necessary to gain seats in the Parliament.

According to the Central Election Commission the ruling National Movement-Democrats received 65,96% of the votes, followed by the Rightist Opposition (Industrialists-New Rights coalition) with 7,42%. Abashidze-backed Revival Union is third with 6,96%.

“Earlier today the Revival Union had more than 8% at the expense of votes received from the Adjarian Autonomy,” said CEC chef Zurab Tchiaberashvili at the news briefing on March 30.

“However, after we had received election results from other parts of Georgia, the proportional support of the Revival [Union] decreased. This shows that the Revival has extremely low support in other parts of Georgia,” he added. According to the CEC Labor Party received 5,96%; Freedom – 4,51%; NDP-Traditionalists – 2,52%; the Unity – 2,27%.

“These results will change, as votes still remain to be counted,” Zurab Tchiaberashvili said. He added that 1,280,000 votes had been counted from the approximately 1.5 million cast.

Elections in one of the election districts of Adjara are disputed. CEC Chairman Zurab Tchiaberashvili told a press conference that elections in Khulo district of Adjara were marred by violations. “I do not rule out that the results in this district will be canceled,” he added.
 
On the other hand, the cancellation of results in Khulo district of Adjara might reduce Revival Union’s standing.

International observers from OSCE, Council of Europe and European Parliament noted that continued intimidation and physical abuse against opposition supporters and journalists in Adjara cast a shadow over general progress in the election process in Georgia.
 
However, as President Saakashvili said late on March 29 “mass ballot fraud was prevented in the region for the first time since Georgia’s independence.” 
 
“There were serious irregularities, especially in high mountainous regions of Adjara. However, the local authorities failed to rig the ballot due to high voter turnout, as well as because of the international observers’ and Prime-Minister’s [Zurab Zhvania] presence in Adjara on elections day,” Saakashvili added.