Georgian president accuses ruling party of using Russian 'methodology' in disputed vote

By Felix Light

Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili accused the ruling party on Monday of resorting to Russian-style tactics and propaganda in a disputed election in which she said its true share of the vote fell far short of its officially announced majority.

Zourabichvili, a trenchant critic of the Georgian Dream party, had earlier called the result a "Russian special operation".

Asked if that comment was a direct accusation that Russia had helped falsify the election, Zourabichvili told Reuters: "No, it's an accusation that the methodology used and the support of most probably Russian FSB (Federal Security Service) types is shown in this election.

"The propaganda that was used ahead of the election...was a direct duplication, a copy-paste, of Russian clips and videos used at the time of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's election."

Zourabichvili has not made public any evidence of FSB involvement in the election. The Kremlin on Monday denied any Russian interference in the vote, saying it was the West, not Moscow, that was trying to destabilise the situation.

The electoral commission said Georgian Dream won nearly 54%. The contest was marred by reports of voting violations that Western countries said must be fully investigated.

Zourabichvili said Georgian Dream had won only around 40%, a figure broadly in line with two exit polls that showed the opposition winning a majority of seats in parliament. Georgia's electoral commission has hailed the vote as free and fair.

In an address on Sunday, Zourabichvili called for Georgians to take to the streets on Monday evening to protest the results of the elections, which she said she did not recognise.

She told Reuters that the planned protest would be an expression by the Georgian people "that they want to keep their European future".

Zourabichvili, a Paris-born former French diplomat, was elected to the Georgian parliament as an independent in 2016 and clinched the presidency in 2018 with the endorsement of Georgian Dream.

But in recent years, the 72-year-old has broken with the party and become one of its most outspoken critics. She has played a key role as a broker among Georgia's divided and fractious opposition parties ahead of Saturday's vote, where they hoped to oust Georgian Dream.

The election results are a blow for pro-Western Georgians who had cast the vote as a choice between a ruling party that has deepened ties with Russia and an opposition aiming to fast-track integration with Europe.

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze accused the opposition on Monday of attempting to "shake the constitutional order" of the country, local media reported. He also said his government remained committed to European integration.