The investigation into the presence of fraud in the recent parliamentary elections was initiated following an appeal by the Central Election Commission of Georgia. The country's President, Salome Zurabishvili, who spoke of "total fraud" in the elections, is summoned for questioning on October 31 to present the evidence she has.
"During the pre-election period and on election day, certain violations were identified, in connection with which law enforcement agencies are actively investigating several criminal cases. The prosecutor's office will periodically inform the public about the results of the investigation," the prosecutor's statement said.
At the same time, the CEC previously accused Zurabishvili of attempting to "discredit electoral technologies," specifically the electronic voting system, and of seeking to "discredit the electoral commission on an international level." The Central Election Commission referred to statements by international observers from the OSCE, who considered the legal framework adequate for holding democratic elections. However, in the same statement, observers noted pressure on voters, cases of vote-buying, intimidation, and violations of voting secrecy.
Independent election expert Roman Udot and programmer Levan Kvirkvelia stated that the ruling party won partly with the help of ballot stuffing, as evidenced by voting graphs.
According to official results, the ruling party "Georgian Dream," responsible for the law on foreign influence, the ban on "LGBT*-propaganda," and other initiatives that have stalled the country's European integration, won the October 26 elections. It received 54% of the votes, securing the majority of seats in parliament.
The opposition did not recognize the election results: party leaders and the President of Georgia called for protests and demanded an investigation into the fraud.
* Recognized in Russia as an "extremist" organization.