Acting US Ambassador: We agree with OSCE/ODIHR regarding Georgian Presidential elections
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Thursday, March 28
Ross Wilson, acting US Ambassador to Georgia says that “we agree with recommendations of OSCE / ODIHR about presidential elections in Georgia, their fulfillment is important.”
Wilson said that the elections were positive in general, but certain problems were detected.
The presidential elections in Georgia were held in October and November of 2018, as two rounds were held.
Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary-General of NATO said during his visit to Georgia on March 25 that NATO wants to see more reforms in the country and strengthening of democratic institutes especially with respect to elections.
The final report by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the 28 October and 28 November 2018 presidential election in Georgia recommends a comprehensive review of the election legislation in order to eliminate gaps and ambiguities and ensure uniform application.
The report, published on 28 February 2019, also recommends enhancing regulations on what constitutes acceptable speech during election campaigns.
The report notes that the election was competitive and professionally administered, candidates were able to campaign freely, fundamental freedoms were generally respected and voters had a genuine choice, although there were instances of misuse of administrative resources, and senior state officials from the ruling party were involved in the campaign.
“The legal framework provides an adequate basis for the conduct of democratic elections, even though key aspects of the second round were not sufficiently regulated,” the report says.
It recommends reviewing the appointment formula for lower-level commissions to ensure more balanced political representation.
The report notes that the use of negative, harsh and at times violent rhetoric significantly overshadowed the campaign, particularly for the second round, and went unaddressed by the authorities.
Enhancing regulations on acceptable speech during election campaigns would allow reviewing potential cases of hate speech and, where appropriate, applying sanctions in a timely manner.
The report further recommends establishing an effective and timely mechanism for addressing complaints on cases of misuse of state resources during the campaign before an impartial and competent authority, to ensure a clear separation between party and state.
Additional recommendations include aligning the number of commission members at each level to the actual need, introducing expedited deadlines to address campaign finance violations, making all decisions and legal opinions of the media regulator publicly available, reviewing the legal framework for election dispute resolution and ensuring that voters cast their ballot free of fear of retribution.
