President Salome Zourabichvili Set to Veto Election Code Amendments
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
The President's administration announced that President Salome Zourabichvili will veto the amendments made to the Election Code today.
The statement released by the administration expressed concerns about recent amendments to Georgia's Election Code, noting their contradiction with the recommendations of the Venice Commission and the European Union. It highlighted concerns regarding the politicization of the process for appointing the election commission, potentially resulting in a biased administration.
The President's administration has expressed concerns that one-party control could potentially undermine trust in the electoral process. Furthermore, the President has reaffirmed her commitment to veto any amendments not aligned with European standards, emphasizing the critical importance of upholding democratic principles
"Today, while the new Prime Minister is in Brussels on his first international visit and an international observation mission is present in the country, the Parliament of Georgia, representing the ruling majority, adopted changes to the election code. These changes contradict both the Venice Commission and the nine recommendations of the European Union.
With the adopted changes, the process of appointing the head and members of the election commission, previously selected and elected through broad consensus, has become entirely fictitious, tailored solely to the political interests of the ruling party.
A risk has emerged that the elections might be conducted by a one-party, biased, and ruling party-controlled election administration, potentially leading to mistrust in both the public and the international community.
As the President has said many times, the President of Georgia will veto amendments to the Election Code, as well as any law that is not in line with the European path of the country," the statement reads.
The Parliament has adopted amendments to the Election Code and Regulations in the third reading. 81 deputies supported the project, while 6 voted against it. The new amendments to the Code entail changes in the procedure for electing the CEC chairman and members, as well as the elimination of the position of the CEC deputy allocated for the opposition quota.
