This afternoon, Georgia’s Election Commission Chief was splattered with paint as he was about to announce the final results of last month’s parliamentary elections.Giorgi Kalandarishvili faced an attack from an opposition party member, David Kirtadze, during a meeting of Georgia’s election body held in Tbilisi.
Mr. Kirtadze, affiliated with the UNM opposition party led by former President Mikheil Saakashvili, threw paint at Mr. Kalandarishvili’s face as election commission officials and party representatives gathered to discuss the final results of the contentious election held on 26 October.
Reports indicate that Mr. Kirtadze tried to speak at the beginning of the meeting but was instructed to wait and adhere to the meeting’s protocol. According to accounts of the event, he attempted to speak again, prompting officials to turn off his microphone.
Opposition leaders in Georgia have rejected the parliamentary election results, claiming there were widespread instances of ballot rigging and voting inconsistencies.
The official election results awarded a 54% majority to Georgian Dream, a party whose opponents argue aims to divert the Caucasus nation from Europe and back towards Russia.
Georgian Dream, perceived as loyal to its billionaire founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, asserts it seeks to protect the country from foreign subversion and from being implicated in a conflict with Russia, akin to the situation in Ukraine.
Despite claiming commitment to pursuing a future in the European Union, the EU has frozen Georgia’s membership application due to apprehensions about democratic regression.
