Georgia to run partial recount amid claims of election fraud
Al Jazeera
Ballots in five randomly selected polling stations in each of Georgia’s 84 electoral districts will be recounted.
Georgia will carry out a partial recount of ballots after claims of fraud in Saturday’s parliamentary elections.
The Central Election Commission said on Tuesday that it will conduct a recount at a small number of randomly selected polling stations. Huge rallies and international concern have been sparked by opposition claims that the vote, which delivered a landslide win for the ruling Georgian Dream party, was rigged.
The government has dismissed accusations of fraud and the electoral commission has called the vote free and fair. However, it announced that it will now recount the ballots in five randomly selected polling stations in each of Georgia’s 84 electoral districts.
The recount will involve about 14 percent of polling stations. Election monitors have reported irregularities at more than one-third of polling stations.
The official results released on Sunday showed that Georgian Dream, which is accused of pulling the country back into Russia’s sphere of influence, won nearly 54 percent of the vote.
