Tbilisi: The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia has charged two individuals with electoral fraud following an investigation into last weekend’s parliamentary elections. The charges come a day after the investigation was launched, focusing on alleged irregularities during the election process.
According to Anadolu Agency, the Interior Ministry’s investigation revealed that the two defendants were involved in placing forged ballots into a ballot box in Marneuli on the voting day. This act led to the termination of the voting process and the declaration of the election results as void, as stated by the prosecutor’s office. Law enforcement authorities arrested the individuals based on a court warrant, and they now face the possibility of up to two years in prison if convicted.
The prosecutor’s office detailed that they will file a motion to the court to apply detention as a measure of constraint for the defendants within the legal timeframe. Additionally, it was noted that the prosecutor’s office, alongside the Int
erior Ministry and the Special Investigative Service, is investigating 47 criminal cases related to alleged offenses during the pre-election period and on the election day.
The offenses under investigation include electoral fraud, influencing voters’ will, vote secrecy violations, vote-buying, interference with journalist activities, violence or threats on election commission premises, and damage or destruction of property. These developments arise amidst claims from opposition parties that the election was rigged, despite the ruling Georgian Dream party securing approximately 54% of the vote, as reported by the country’s electoral authority.
While Georgian Dream officials, including Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and honorary chairman Bidzina Ivanishvili, have expressed approval of the election results, President Salome Zourabichvili has rejected them, alleging a “Russian special operation.” The opposition has also denounced the election as ‘stolen.’