Opposition Proposes Amendments to Election Code
Opposition parties have proposed draft amendment to the election code, which if approved by the parliament, paves the way for party-based election administrations.
Currently the Central Election Commission (CEC) is made up of certified election officials, who, according to the ruling party, have no affiliation with any political party. Opposition politicians, however, have said that the appointment of Levan Tarkhnishvili, who is believed to have close links with the ruling party, as chief of the CEC has once again demonstrated that the authorities are not willing to lessen their grip on the CEC.
The opposition?s proposal envisages setting up of a new CEC with total of 12 members, wherein five members will be appointed by the ruling National Movement Party and the rest by those seven opposition parties which are eligible of receiving state funding: New Rights, Industrialist, Labor, Freedom, Republican and Conservative parties.
The package of amendments also envisages abolishment of the current majoritarian election system ? a first-past-the-post, ?winner takes all? system. wherein those parties win multi-mandate constituencies. Fifty new lawmakers, out of 150, will be elected to the new parliament through this system.
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