We urge all stakeholders to fully comply with the law and to contribute to the conduct of the elections in a peaceful and orderly manner, said the Chairman of the Central Election Commission at today’s summary briefing on the 4 October Elections.

“Tomorrow, on October 4, elections will be held for the representative bodies of municipalities (Sakrebulos) and for the mayors of self-governing cities and communities. Citizens of Georgia will elect 2,058 council (Sakrebulo) members across 64 municipal councils, through both proportional and majoritarian systems, as well as 64 mayors.

The electoral process will be observed by 28 international and 27 domestic organizations, and covered by nearly 1,000 representatives from 73 media outlets. Among the registered international organizations are representatives from various embassies, international organizations, and election management bodies from 21 countries, including Bulgaria, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Slovakia, Montenegro, Turkey, and Moldova.

It is noteworthy that, throughout the day, working meetings will be held with election management bodies from various countries and with international organizations. Within the framework of these meetings, I will personally provide participants with information on any issues of interest to them related to the elections.

In addition, twelve political parties are registered for the 4 October elections. In Tbilisi, nine candidates are registered for the mayoral contest. All twelve political parties have submitted party lists for the Tbilisi City Council (Sakrebulo) elections.

Outside of Tbilisi, a total of 112 mayoral candidates are registered across the remaining 63 municipalities, including four candidates nominated by initiative groups.

Regarding candidates registered in local majoritarian constituencies, a total of 2,228 majoritarian candidates are registered, including 32 nominated by initiative groups. In Tbilisi, there are 160 registered candidates.

Nationwide, 3,061 polling stations have been established, of which 2,284 will conduct voting electronically, while 777 will operate using the traditional paper-based method. This total includes 10 special polling stations established in penitentiary facilities.

All polling stations are ready to receive voters. The voting process will commence at 08:00. Voters must present a valid Georgian national identification card or passport. Voting will conclude at 20:00; however, voters who are still in line at that time will be allowed to cast their ballots. In such cases, under the direction of the precinct election commission chairperson, a commission member will record those voters in line, allowing them to participate in the voting process.

It should be noted that municipal elections are among the most complex and administratively challenging electoral processes. Accordingly, the election administration has been actively preparing throughout the year to conduct these elections at a high professional standard and in accordance with international norms. A wide range of large-scale activities has been implemented across various areas to ensure effective administration.

Based on the work carried out and the results of the mock election, I can confidently state that the election administration is fully prepared for tomorrow. I would like to express my gratitude to all election administrators and all stakeholders involved - ranging from public institutions to various entities, including political parties, the media, and non-governmental organizations - for their contributions and support in preparing the election administration for this highly significant electoral event.

The Central Election Commission calls upon the district and precinct election commissions to facilitate the vital processes of election observation and media coverage, strictly adhering to the procedures established by law. At the same time, it urges observer organizations to comply with legislation, refrain from interfering in the functions and activities of the commissions, and thereby contribute to the conduct of the electoral process in a peaceful and professional environment. The election administration will operate within the framework of the law and will promptly employ legally established mechanisms in the event of any interference or obstruction in its activities.

Elections are a common cause. For this reason, I first appeal to voters to be active, to turn out at the polls, and to exercise their right to make a choice. I also address all stakeholders—including registered political parties, local and international non-governmental organizations, and the media—to contribute to conducting the electoral process in a peaceful and free environment. Your participation is essential for ensuring the transparency and integrity of the electoral process.

The election administration is fully prepared to conduct the elections in strict compliance with the law, ensuring transparency and a high professional standard. I would like to emphasize, first and foremost, that these are the first municipal elections in which the election administration will employ electronic technologies on a wide scale. This innovation will significantly enhance the efficiency and simplicity of procedures while ensuring greater transparency.

For the municipal elections on 4 October, the total number of registered voters is 3,513,818. Of these, 3,130,348 voters will participate using electronic voting technologies.

Notably, for the first time, approximately 47,000 young citizens are eligible to participate in the elections. To inform these first-time voters, the Central Election Commission has conducted a series of informational activities.

In response to requests for mobile ballot boxes, the election administration has received applications from 60,754 voters.

The elections will be administered by nearly 34,000 election administrators.

At polling stations where voting is conducted using electronic means, each voter receives a single ballot divided into three columns. Along with the ballot, the registrar provides the voter with a specially designed frame-envelope. Upon arriving at an electronic polling station, the voter does not mark the number of the desired electoral subject; instead, using a special marker, they shade/color in each column the inner space of the circle corresponding to only one electoral subject or candidate of their choice. The voter then places the ballot into the vote-counting device under the slot cover using the special frame-envelope. It should be noted that the slot cover is being used for the first time in this election.

The vote-counting device automatically tallies the votes, and upon the conclusion of voting, immediately following the completion of mandatory procedures, it prints an extract of preliminary election results. This extract is transmitted to the Central Election Commission via tablet. This, of course, means that the time required for the publication of preliminary results is significantly reduced, and it is expected that the preliminary data will be made available to the public within 1–2 hours after the close of voting. This timeframe reflects the processes of data reception and consolidation. It should be noted that the transmitted data will also be accessible to any interested party on the Commission’s website at results.cec.gov.ge.”

Furthermore, it should be noted that, to ensure transparency and reliability, provisions have been made for the manual counting of ballots. During the counting process, commission members will separate valid and invalid ballots and compare the results with the data produced by the vote-counting devices.

At other polling stations, voting will be conducted according to the standard procedures in place; however, at these stations, ballots will be scanned and digitized, uploaded to a secure platform, and made accessible to all interested parties.

I would also like to emphasize that the electronic voting devices are not connected to the Internet, and therefore there is no risk of cyber threats. Voting is, of course, conducted in secrecy. All polling stations are equipped with modified (so-called cut-out) voting booths. It should be reminded that photography and videography inside the voting booths are strictly prohibited. Furthermore, there is no connection between the voter and the ballot, nor between the verification device and the ballot, which constitutes an additional safeguard for ensuring the secrecy of the vote.

It is also important to note that, based on the experience of the election administration and the vendor company, the likelihood of any device malfunctioning is minimal. Nevertheless, such eventualities have been anticipated and adequately safeguarded against. The most important point is that, under no circumstances, will the voting process be interrupted.

Throughout the day, the Central Election Commission’s contact hub will be operational at 2 51 00 51. In addition, the media center will operate continuously, providing the media and other electoral stakeholders with access to information on issues of interest to them.

We urge all stakeholders to fully comply with the law and to contribute to the conduct of the elections in a peaceful and orderly manner”, - said Giorgi Kalandarishvili.