The Georgian Dream Party is leading after preliminary vote counts.
The ruling Georgian Dream Party won 53.6% of the vote after preliminary counts from 80% of polling stations.
According to preliminary figures from the Central Election Commission of Georgia, 58.94% of voters went to the polling stations.
Over 2 million people have voted. After counting preliminary votes from nearly 80% of polling stations, the ruling Georgian Dream party is leading with 53.6% of the vote. It is highly likely that the party will receive a majority of seats in Parliament. Meanwhile, the opposition coalition received only 38.2% of the vote.
Notably, both the ruling party and the opposition have declared victory, while post-election polls show contradictory results.
The Georgian Dream party and its leadership gathered at the main office, congratulating each other. Afterwards, there were even fireworks, and lines of cars honking their horns, displaying Georgian flags and Georgian Dream party flags, began driving through the streets of Tbilisi.
"The opposition is not falling behind at all. Europe won, Georgia won. The opposition won!" said Tina Bokuchava, Chairwoman of the Solidarity – Nationalist Movement opposition alliance.
Observers say that, overall, the election proceeded quite peacefully, without any serious incidents. The street riots that some experts had predicted also did not begin.
However, security was ensured by the authorities. There were many police officers on the streets of Tbilisi, and special forces were deployed on the government building complex.
According to RIA Novosti, many believe that things could change. Opposition parties, including the Solidarity – National Movement coalition, the Alliance for Change, and Georgia, have strongly declared that they will not recognize the election results. Protests are expected to begin on October 27th.
