Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association is monitoring January 28, 2016 pre-term elections of Gardabani Municipality Gamgebeli.

In addition to civilian electoral precincts, GYLA is also monitoring polling process in Vaziani, at a special polling precinct no.64, where to our knowledge total of 692 voters will cast a ballot, including 685 military voters.

By 15:00 polling process is mostly peaceful, with the exception of certain isolated incidents. Majority of polling stations where GYLA monitoring opening procedures was ready to receive the first voter on time.

As of now, GYLA’s observers have found the following types of violations:

Acts of confrontation

From about 11:30 to 12:00 in the morning, a confrontation occurred outside the electoral precinct no.4 of Gardabani. GYLA’s observer reported that three individuals with unidentified status engaged in a physical confrontation. About ten people interfered, trying to part them. According to GYLA’s observer later representatives of the United National Movement got involved and deescalated the situation. Notably, police did not arrive to take measures to stop the incident. Unidentified individuals remain mobilized outside the electoral precinct.

MP Giorgi Baramidze from the National Movement engaged in a verbal confrontation with a voter inside the polling station no.1 of Gardabani. Giorgi Baramidze alleged that the voter was trying to mobilize supporters of the Georgian Dream at the precinct and was campaigning outside of the polling place.

Representatives of the Georgian Dream and NGO Choice of Future engaged in a confrontation following allegations that a representative of the Georgian Dream interfered with activities of a commission member.

Presence of unauthorized individuals at a polling station

An individual holding a video camera was seen at a special electoral precinct no.64 in Gardabani. He stated that he was a media representative and was there to shoot a video footage. When the PEC chair asked him to show a badge to see his identity and status, he responded that he did not have any. He also said that he was from the press office of the Ministry of Defense. The electoral commission allowed him at the precinct; however, after GYLA’s observer expressed a verbal reproof over presence of unauthorized individual at the polling place, the PEC chair demanded that he leave the station.

Failure to adequately fulfill duties of an election worker and errors in control sheet

At electoral precinct no.4 of Gardabani, election workers filled out the control sheet in violation of applicable legal requirements – para.10 of Article 61 of the Election Code. In particular, the PEC secretary entered information about the first voter at the precinct without establishing first that the voter was registered at the precinct. After the voter’s information was recorded, the PEC members found out that the voter was not registered at a different electoral precinct.

In addition, the PEC secretary entered information about one of the PEC members into the control sheet two times.

Improper conduct of representatives of monitoring organizations at electoral precincts

GYLA’s observe reported that representatives of the following monitoring organizations violated ethics principles and attempted to interfere with the work of the election administration in individual cases: Young Initiators’ Club, Choice of Future, Internaitonal Network of Civil Development, Young Initiators’ Club, Anti-Corruption Media Center and Free Zone (election precincts no.4, 8, 53).

We would like to highlight that an observer has a legal right to criticize poor performance of an election administration and urge it to remedy the irregularities. An election administration on its end is obligated to consider observer’s criticism and complaints. However, it does not give the right to an observer to interfere in the work of an electoral administration and influence its activities. Therefore, we urge the electoral administration to act adequately and ensure order at electoral precincts. We also urge monitoring organizations involve to ensure that their observers act in abidance of the ethics principles and requirements of law.

Other information

Gardabani electoral precinct no.1 had a problem with power outage. GYLA’s observer reported that power was cut in every ten minutes. The precinct also had problems with heating.

GYLA’s observers filed two complaints with electoral commissions in response to one incident.

Additional information

Nearly ten observers of GYLA are monitoring the Polling Day in static and mobile groups. Based on GYLA’s past experience, the monitoring focuses on electoral precincts that proved to be problematic in previous elections, on special electoral precincts and areas populated by ethnic minorities.

Since the day it was founded in 1994, GYLA has been actively monitoring legislative, executive and local self-government elections in Georgia, with the aim of promoting peaceful and fair conduct of elections, and strict abidance by applicable Georgian laws during the election processes. 

At the end of the day GYLA will sum up the course of the Election Day monitoring.