Tbilisi, 14 June 2014

Assessment of Pre-Election Environment by Nongovernmental Organization:

Local Elections 2014
International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED)
Transparency International Georgia
Georgian Young Lawyers Association (GYLA)

Executive Summary
The monitoring conducted by three nongovernmental organizations showed that, compared with the 2012 parliamentary
elections, during the 2014 pre-election period, there was a smaller number of different types of violations of electoral law,
including the cases of the use of administrative resources for campaign purposes and the instances of voter bribing and
intimidation and detention of political activists. However, the number of problems during the pre-election period of the
2014 local government elections was much higher compared with the 2013 presidential election.
There was an expectation of fundamental legislative changes in the process of the drafting of the Local Government Code
and reform of the Electoral Code in 2013-2014. However, the ultimate results of the reform fell short of the ambitious plans
that the authorities had initially announced. Regrettably, the electoral system has not changed, which should have

been the main priority of the reform.

Like the electoral system, we believe that the rules for the appointment of electoral administration need to be
revised in the shortest possible period of time since they cannot ensure multiparty composition of commissions.
The question of voter list remains a problem too since the current voter list cannot ensure a high level of
credibility and does not reflect the real situation.
The electoral administration was duly prepared for the start of the pre-election period. It is noteworthy that the
Central Electoral Commission (CEC) did not simply consider the appeal that it had received but also showed
interest in the media reports concerning possible violations and examined alleged irregularities proactively,
which is a welcome attitude. The CEC's inconsistent approach to the registration of candidates raised questions.
We believe that the work of the Interagency Commission for Free and Fair Elections should have been more
effective in terms of the prevention of violations and timely reaction to them. During the period of its work, the
commission did not present a report on how it had reacted to reported violations.
During the pre-election period, multiple cases where candidates withdrew from the elections as a result of likely
pressure on them were reported. The law enforcement agencies need to examine these in deatail.

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Non-governmental organizations assess the pre-election environment

Multiple cases of obstruction of election campaign, physical confrontation, and damage to campaign
materials were recorded, which indicates that violent nature of political culture remains a problem.
There have been effectively no instances of formal use of administrative resources, although several projects
financed from the state budget had a similar impact.
The work of the State Audit Office before the 2014 local elections should be assessed positively as it did not
show any signs of different treatment of different parties.
The media outlets provided quite a balanced coverage of pre-election developments before the 2014 local
elections, although there was a lack of in-depth coverage of the election campaign.
The gender imbalance among the nominated candidates was problematic, which is further proof of the need for
a change in the electoral system and revision of the norms concerning gender quotas.
The key findings of the nongovernmental organizations are presented below.

Electoral Law
The government's decision to establish the 50 percent plus one vote threshold for the election of mayors and
gamgebelis clearly merits a positive assessment as it will ensure that the heads of the local executive bodies will
be elected by the majority of the population.
In terms of the changes that had to be made in the Electoral Code, the electoral system reform was a priority for
the civil sector. However, despite our recommendation, no essential changes were implemented in this area that
would eliminate the shortcomings of the current systems by ensuring proportional reflection of the voters' will in
the distribution of mandates and the equal weight of every vote according to the international standards.
Moreover, following an amendment to the Electoral Code, initiative groups were deprived of the right to
nominate candidates for mayor/gamgebeli, which made it impossible for independent candidates to run in the
elections. This restriction must definitely be assessed negatively since, on the one hand, it deprives citizens of
their constitutional right to run as candidates in elections, while, on the other hand, limiting the voters' freedom
to elect candidates of their choice.
Voter Lists
Under the amendments adopted on 7 March 2014, the rules for the creation of voter lists changed and, instead of
biometric registration of voters, the State Services Development Agency was tasked with comparing the photos
from the database and eliminating duplicate entries in the lists in this manner.1 Voter photos were added to the
desk lists and, along with other data, the appearance of the voters who turn up at the polling stations on the
election day will be compared with the photos in the desk lists. We believe that comparing the photos from
the agency's database cannot ensure creation of a highly credible voter list.

The Georgian Electoral Code, Article 1841

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Non-governmental organizations assess the pre-election environment

The question of the voters who are registered without an address, as well as the voters who have been deregistered in their places of residence and the individuals whose registration was declared void through the State
Services Development Agency's decision remains a problem during the local government elections. According to
the changes that have been implemented, these individuals had to apply to the State Services Development
Agency before 28 May 2014 and register in their places of residence in order to vote in the 2014 local
government elections. A total of 12,048 citizens used this opportunity, including 3,353 individuals who had
been registered without an address and 7,757 voters who had been de-registered.2
The CEC finished processing the voter data supplied by the State Services Development Agency on 9 June. The
total number of voters reached 3,429,748.3 The number of voters decreased by 107,971 voters compared with the
2013 presidential election.4
Electoral Administration
The rules for the appointment of electoral administration did not change following the amendments to the
Electoral Code. Aside from the proffessional members of the commissions, the electoral commissions formed for
the 2014 local government elections only included the repesentatives of two political forces: The six members
appointed by the Georgian Dream coalition and the one member appointed by the United National Movement.
This has drawn criticism on multiple occasions.
The electoral administration was duly prepared for the start of the pre-election period. Before the appointment
of the precinct electoral commissions (PECs), the CEC chairwoman urged the District Electoral Commissions
(DECs) to approach the selection of PEC members with the highest degree of responsibility and professionalism
and to choose impartial individuals with professional experience and no previous record of violations. We assess
this positively. It is noteworthy that the CEC did not simply consider the appeal that it had received but also
showed interest in the media reports concerning possible violations and examined alleged irregularities
proactively, which is a welcome attitude.
We believe that the CEC resolution which established the criteria for disqualifying party lists in cases where the
number of candidates was below the minimum requirement of the law had a positive impact on the pre-election
environment. The resolution aided all the parties that faced the threat of having their candidate lists disqualified
because of the de-registering of their candidates. However, the CEC overstepped its authority by passing this
resolution since it established a rule different from the one provided for in the Electoral Code.
Electoral Subject Registration
The CEC was inconsistent in its handling of the process of electoral subject registration. The CEC interpreted the
regulation from Article 167 of the Electoral Code requiring the candidates for mayor and gamgebeli to have
permanently resided in Georgia for the past two years and the ambiguity of this regulation to the disadvantage
of the candidates from opposition political parties and to the advantage of the ruling coalition. The CEC should
have applied the same standard regardless of the political entity and the candidate in question. This has, to some
extent, cast a shadow on the CEC's image and its work which was otherwise positive.

The Georgian Ministry of Justice, News, (1 June 2014) , http://www.justice.gov.ge/News/Detail?newsId=4567

The Central Electoral Commission, The CEC Has Published Final Voter Numbers, http://www.cesko.ge/ge/mediisatvis-4-ge/pres-relizebi-13ge/ceskom-amomrchevelta-saboloo-raodenoba-gamoaqveyna.page
4
The Central Electoral Commission, The CEC Has Published Total Voters Bumber for 27 October 2013 Presidential Election,
http://www.cesko.ge/ge/mediisatvis-4-ge/pres-relizebi-13-ge/ceskom-2013-wlis-27-oqtombris-prezidentis-archevnebistvisamomrchevelta-saerto-raodenoba-gamoaqveyna-16854.page
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Non-governmental organizations assess the pre-election environment

Interagency Commission for Free and Fair Elections

The Interagency Commission for Free and Fair Elections had an important role during the pre-election period. It
was established in order to "prevent violation of the Georgian electoral law by public servants and to react to
violations."5
Although the commission has no mechanism whatsoever for ensuring implementation of its recommendations,
it seems that the commission has not shown any interest in whether or not its recommendations have been
implemented either. The commission has not presented a report on the actual impact of its activities in terms of
the improvement of the preelection environment and, more specifically, about the extent to which it was able
prevent violations or the results of its reaction.
Pressure on Candidates, Political Persecution, and Detentions
As the local government elections approached (in February, March, and early April), the individuals involved in
active party work were summoned to invetsigative bodies increasingly often (for interrogation or charges). On 14
April 2014, the Interagency commission urged the Prosector's Office to refrain from interrogating the persons
who were directly involved in the campaign for the local government elections as part of investigation
procedures before the election day, except for the cases where there was an urgent need or the danger of
missing procedural deadlines. On the same day, the Georgian prime minister declared a moratorium on legal
procedures against the persons involved in the election campaign, urging investigative bodies to refrain from
detaining and interrogating these individuals during the pre-election period, so that every party would be able to
conduct a normal campaign.
The current law does not provide for declaring a moratorium on carrying out legal procedures during the preelection period. The declaration of the moratorium was the expression of the political will of the authorities to
provide the persons involved in the electoral processes with the possibility of conducting a normal campaign
and to prevent any questions concerning restriction of the freedom of politically active individuals from arising.
We assess this initiative by the prime minister positively.
During the reporting period, there were multiple reports about candidates from different opposition parties and
electoral blocs who had decided not to run in the elections presumably as a result of pressure and had
withdrawn from the races. Civil society organizations received this information from political parties. According
to our information, some 50 candidates of six opposition parties in 15 districts of nine different regions had
withdrawn from the elections as of 9 June, presumably as a result of pressure.6 The victims mostly refused to
name the persons who had subjected them to pressure.
We believe that the reaction of the relevant state bodies to the alleged cases of pressure on candidates was
inadequate and ineffective. Without conducting any kind of investigation, the Georgian Internal Affairs Ministry
denied that there had been any vases of pressure on candidates and that police officers could have been
involved in them. Against this background, rather than condemning violence and pressure unconditionally and
highlighting the need for effective investigation, the prime minister unjustifiably stated that Georgian Dream

The Georgian Electoral Code, Article 48, Paragraph 3.

NGOs respond to reports on pressure on candidates in eleven election districts, http://transparency.ge/en/post/generalannouncement/ngos-respond-reports-pressure-candidates-eleven-election-districts
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Non-governmental organizations assess the pre-election environment

would not let another political force win in any region or city.7 According to the Prosecutor's Office, 76 of the 80
alleged cases of pressure did not prove to be true. Investigation only began in four cases.8
Instances of Obstruction of Election Campaign and Physical Confrontation
Four cases of presumably politically motivated physical assault were recorded during the pre-election period.
Three of these cases involved members of the United National Movement, while the non-parliamentary
opposition's candidate for Telavi mayor was targeted in the fourth.
There were cases of obstruction of agitation which mostly targeted the United National Movement. We
recorded 15 cases of this type. It was mostly the members and activists of the Georgian Dream coalition that did
not let the United National Movement's representatives hold planned meetings. Verbal and physical
confrontation also took place.
Regrettably, in the majority of cases, the law enforcers were unable to ensure peaceful and safe conduct of preelection meetings and events and prevent violence. The sanctions imposed on the detained individuals were also
inadequate, which naturally did not facilitate prevention of further violations.
Obstruction of agitation involved thwarting of pre-election meetings, as well as damaging and destruction of
campaign materials. Such cases were recorded in almost all municipalities and the campaign materials of both
the ruling coalition and the opposition parties were targeted.
Use of Financial Administrative Resources
Unlawful use of financial administrative resources was rare. However, several projects that were financed from
the state budget and were initiated a few days before the start of the pre-election period had a similar effect.
During the actual pre-election period, one case was recorded in Dusheti where the municipality's budget
program was expanded during the pre-election period, which was a violation of the law. Also, in a few dozen
municipalities, the financing of some budget projects increased one or two days before the start of the preelection period, which was not a formal violation or the law but, again, highlighted the shortcomings of the
regulation discussed above.
Moreover, the number of the recipients of social aid increased before the elections both at the central and the
local level, which might be considered an electorally motivated move.
In some cases, the central authorities also implemented electorally motivated initiatives which could have aimed
winning over the voters. Examples include programs like payments to large families and the Produce in Georgia
program.
State Audit Office
The work of the State Audit Office's Service for Monitoring Financial Activities of Political Parties in 2014 can be
assessed positively. Unlike 2012, there were no signs of differentiated attitude to different parties in the office's
work.

Prime Ministers statements to have an adverse impact on pre-election environment, http://transparency.ge/en/post/generalannouncement/prime-minister-s-statements-have-adverse-impact-pre-election-environment

8
The Chief Prosecutor's Office. The Prosecutor's Office Releases Special Statement on Possible Instances of Pressure Against Electoral Subjects,
http://pog.gov.ge/geo/news?info_id=501
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On 10 June, the State Audit Office discovered that three political parties had violated the legal requirement to
present information and addressed the court to impose fines on the Georgia's Way party, the Conservative Party,
and the Georgian Patriots' Alliance.9
Moreover, on 9 June, the State Audit Office published information regarding the violation of the legal
requirement to present information of some 160 independent electoral subjects. According to the statement, the
State Audit Office also addressed the court in order to have fines imposed on these individuals.10
It is noteworthy that, in order to ensure transparency, the State Audit Office established an ad hoc consulting
commission working on monitoring legality and transparency of political financing made up of representatives
of local and international organizations. The commission receives regular reports on the work of the Service for
Monitoring Financial Activities of Political Parties.
According to the reports presented to the State Audit Office by political parties, the Georgian Dream coalition
received the largest total income in 2013: Approximately 9 million lari. The United National Movement was
second with some 5 million lari, followed by the Democratic Movement United Georgia with approximately 3.5
million lari.
It is noteworthy that 387 contributors of different parties had connections with 875 companies as owners,
directors, representatives, or applicants. These contributors donated a total of 5,119,662 lari to parties. Of these
875 companies, 102 received public contracts with the total value of 27,140,114 lari in 2013-2014, including
11,654,908 lari won through competitive tenders and 15,445,206 received through simplified direct
procurement.11
Media Before 2014 Local Elections
Before the 2014 local government elections, media outlets provided quite a balanced coverage of the preelection developments. Following the transformation of the must carry rule into a permanent norm, the
population had unlimited access to diverse information and different TV stations.
Unlike the 2012 parliamentary elections, there were almost no cases of pressure on journalists, obstruction of
their activities or interference with journalist work by state agencies, except for several incidents in the regions
where the journalists were not allowed to attend candidates' events and to ask them questions. There were
several recorded cases of verbal confrontation between the representatives of the government and the media
over the dissemination of critical materials. We consider this an attempt to interfere with the editorial work of the
media outlets.
As in previous years, the lack of in-depth coverage has been evident. With some exceptions, the pre-election
coverage of the majority of media outlets was limited to describing the daily activities of the electoral subjects.
Critical questions and detailed analysis of the candidates' promises were rare. The analysis of the candidates' past
activities, assets, possible conflicts of interest and other questions of this kind was, once again, conducted mostly
by nongovernmental organizations. It has to be said, however, that the media outlets subsequently provided
active coverage of these findings and research results.

The State Audit Office, Statement by Service for Monitoring Financial Activities of Political Parties (10 June 2014), http://sao.ge/news/353
The State Audit Office, Statement by Service for Monitoring Financial Activities of Political Parties (9 June 2014), http://sao.ge/news/352
11
Transparency International Georgia, New report assesses financial transparency and accountability of political parties in 2013,
http://transparency.ge/en/post/report/new-report-assesses-financial-transparency-and-accountability-political-parties-2013
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Television remains the main source of information for the voters. The majority of the channels aired political talk
shows at least once a week, with the elections being one of the main topics.
Large amounts of political money are not injected into the media today, unlike the 2012 parliamentary elections
when the large TV stations had close ties with political parties and received direct or indirect funding from them
too. Presently, a lot of things have changed for the better both in terms of ownership transparency and political
control over the media.
Internet is free in Georgia: No attempts to block online content, applications or programs have been recorded
and no one has been punished for publishing any materials either. However, the fact that the law enforcement
agencies have direct access to the data of telecommunication companies and all types of communication
between citizens remains a problem. Through the so-called black boxes, which the Internal Affairs Ministry
connected to the infrastructure of the telecommunications operators (or which they themselves connected upon
the ministry's demand) years ago, the law enforcement agencies have the capacity to simultaneously monitor
tens of thousands of individuals, detect their location, read text messages and personal electronic
correspondence.
Gender Imbalance
The Georgian Central Electoral Commission produced gender statistics for the 2014 local government elections,
reflecting the balance between women and men among the candidates for mayor and gamgebeli as well as
party list candidates running in the elections.
According to the CEC, 14 candidates for Tbilisi mayor were registered for the local government elections,
including 12 men and two women. A total of 73 individuals registered as candidates for the mayor's office in selfgoverning cities. Only eight of the registered candidates are women and the other 65 are men. As for the
candidates for the office of gamgebeli in self-governing communities, only 10 of the 261 registered candidates
are women.12 There are a total of 1,129 candidates on party lists in the elections of local representative body in
Tbilisi, including 702 men and 427 women.13
These figures are further proof of the fact that more women are nominated to local government representative
bodies through the proportional system than through the majoritarian system. In order to change the situation,
it is important to reform the law and to establish the kind of electoral system that will promote stronger
representation of women in local government bodies. However, legislative changes alone will not be enough
unless political parties create equal conditions for women and make it possible for them to engage in political
processes.

12

The Central Electoral Commission, Gender Statistics for 2014 Local Government Elections,
http://www.cesko.ge/uploads/other/27/27802.pdf
13
Ibid.
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