Pre-Election Monitoring of October 8, 2016 Parliamentary Elections Third Interim Report

The monitoring was supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). The third interim report covers the period from August 8 to September 1, 2016, and highlights key findings and recommendations. A special electoral regime came into effect during the reporting period, with the prohibition on amending budgets and increasing unplanned welfare benefits, as well as the application of special media regulations. The registration of electoral subjects was completed, with a total of 6 electoral blocs and 24 parties competing in the parliamentary elections. ISFED observers monitored 439 public meetings during the period, and instances of alleged political intimidation/harassment against members of opposition parties and their activists grew considerably. ISFED identified 11 instances of alleged political harassment/intimidation, 2 cases of physical violence, 1 case of possible vote buying, 5 cases of campaigning by unauthorized persons, 4 cases of misuse of administrative resources, 7 cases of campaign interference, and 5 cases of damaging campaign materials. The report highlights key trends, including the targeting of United National Movement (UNM) offices and meetings of Georgian Dream candidates with voters, harassment/intimidation of opposition party members and activists, and the destruction of campaign materials. The report also highlights irregularities in the registration of electoral subjects at the Central Election Commission (CEC) and the composition of precinct election commissions (PECs) by professional members. ISFED found that the CEC registered the party "The Centrists" based on insufficient and unreliable documents, and that the selection of professional members at some PECs was conducted on the basis of pre-made lists. Based on these findings, ISFED makes several recommendations, including the investigation of instances of possible misconduct and exceeding of official power by law enforcement officers, the full abidance by electoral legislation and maximum observance of equality of electoral subjects by the Central Election Commission, and the elimination of any forms of relationship with voters that pose the risk of vote buying by political parties and electoral subjects. The report also highlights several instances of alleged political harassment/intimidation against political activists, including the case of Akaki Chkhaidze, an independent candidate for majoritarian district #60, who reported that his supporters were harassed by the Georgian Dream, and the case of UNM activists in Kobuleti, who were summoned to the police station and interrogated in connection to an incident involving the placement of stickers on bus stops and garbage bins. Overall, the report highlights the need for law enforcement authorities, the Central Election Commission, and political parties to take steps to ensure a free and fair electoral environment, and to prevent instances of alleged political harassment/intimidation and vote buying.