Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili accuses Russia of interfering in the election to extend its reach into Georgian politics.
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili has announced that she would not acknowledge the results of the recent parliamentary elections, alleging Russian interference aimed at consolidating its influence in Georgia.
"As the last independent institution, I cannot recognise these elections—it would legitimise Russia's takeover of Georgia," Zourabichvili wrote on X on Sunday, adding, "Our ancestors endured too much for us to surrender our European future."
Preliminary election results indicate a victory for the ruling Georgian Dream party, which secured 53.93 percent of the vote. Opposition groups, including the Coalition for Change at 11.03 percent, Unity-UNM at 10.16 percent, Strong Georgia at 8.81 percent, and Gakharia for Georgia at 7.77 percent, garnered smaller shares.
Speaking from the Presidential Palace, Zourabichvili condemned the election process, describing it as a case of "hybrid warfare" and labelling it part of a Russian strategy to extend its reach into Georgian politics.
Meanwhile, Georgia's prime minister has hailed the election result, rejecting allegations.
"Irregularities happen everywhere," Irakli Kobakhidze of the Georgian Dream party told BBC in an interview on Sunday.
"The general content of the elections was in line with legal principles and the principle of democratic elections."
He also said that there was no room for manipulation because of the new electronic voting system.
'Protect Georgia'
Aligning with the opposition, Zourabichvili called on international allies to "protect Georgia by standing with the people, not an illegitimate government."
She invited the public and opposition leaders to gather for a demonstration in front of the Parliament Building in Tbilisi on Monday evening.
As of yet, Russia has not issued a response to Zourabichvili’s allegations.
Kobakhidze also accused the opposition of lying, arguing that they had also said the vote had been falsified in 2016, 2020 and 2021.
"Of course, they have now no other way, so they have to tell their supporters that either they were lying or the government rigged the elections."
