On October 3, 2026, by-elections Sakrebulos of Vani, Tsalka, Dmanisi and Akhmeta will be held. At its meeting held today, the Central Election Commission [CEC] adopted a decision to hold by-elections under the majoritarian electoral system in the respective municipalities.

A total of 7 polling stations will be established for the by-elections, four of which will be equipped with electronic voter verification and vote-counting devices. Voters will elect four majoritarian members of Sakrebulos in the respective municipalities. As of now, the number of registered voters is 2,201.

At today’s meeting, the CEC approved the electoral activities schedule for the October 3 by-elections and determined a number of other important election-related matters.

Among other decisions, the CEC adopted resolutions on determining the procedures, eligibility requirements, deadlines and selection process for the competitive selection of chairpersons and members of the Precinct Election Commissions established for the October 3 by-elections; announcing competitive selections and establishing selection committees for temporary members of the District Election Commissions of Akhmeta N 18, Dmanisi N 24, Tsalka N 25 and Vani N 53 and determining the procedure for certifying the audit of voting/elections conducted using electronic means, among other matters.

Immediately after adopting the decision, the election administration began implementing the electoral procedures prescribed by law. As of today, all legal requirements, permissions and restrictions related to the calling of the by-elections have taken effect.

The rules governing the conduct of the pre-election campaign have also entered into force as of today, along with the provisions prohibiting the use of budgetary funds or official or employment status for campaign purposes.

The election administration calls on all stakeholders involved in the elections to conduct each stage of the electoral process in accordance with the requirements of the law and to pay due attention to the established deadlines.

At the same time, we would like to remind entities interested in participating in the elections that, in order to participate in Sakrebulo By-elections, a political party that was registered for the most recent parliamentary elections or has a representative in the Parliament of Georgia as of the date the elections were called, as well as a political party that was registered to participate in the most recent elections of municipal bodies, must submit an application to the CEC no later than August 17 (no later than the 47th day before election day).

Within the same timeframe, a political party that does not meet the above-mentioned requirements shall submit an application to the CEC. Upon receipt of the application, the CEC shall immediately provide the party with a sample form of the list of its supporters for the collection of supporters’ signatures. Within the same timeframe, a voters’ initiative group shall submit an application to the respective District Election Commission.

We would also like to remind the media, international organizations and local non-governmental organizations interested in observing and covering the aforementioned process to complete the procedures prescribed by law for registration and accreditation with the CEC or the respective District Election Commissions in a timely manner, so that they can participate in election observation and coverage without any impediments.

The deadline for submitting applications for accreditation to the respective election commission is September 23 (by 18:00) for representatives of the media and local observer organizations, while international observer organizations must submit their applications to the CEC by September 26 (by 18:00).