Page 7 - GEORptNov20

United National Movement, or UNM, and European Georgia) in the country of nearly four million have positioned themselves against Georgian Dream. Thus, finding a junior ruling partner will be nearly impossible for Ivanishvili’s party, a party that has dominated the parliament for the past eight years.
The single-mandate majoritarian MPs and elected lawmakers of smaller parties allowed for the first time in parliament may play a role in the formation of the ruling majority, but it is still unclear as to which side the various MPs would end up on.
Against this background, both Georgian Dream and UNM claim they anticipate winning through at the ballot box. UNM has even announced a rally for Rustaveli Avenue, in front of the parliament, due to kick off immediately after the polling stations close. Saakashvili, having put in online appearances during the final electoral rallies of UNM, wastes no opportunity to speculate on the election outcome amid the uncertainty generated by the more than likely tight results.
Saakashvili warned Ivanishvili—an ex-PM seen by his critics as de facto ruling Georgia from his striking mansion set on a mountain that overlooks the capital—that in the case of the rigging of the election, he would receive “a personal and very strong response”. Given the stakes, international organisations eventually decided to fly in short-term observers, rather than only rely on permanent representatives on the ground as was originally contemplated.
The Delegation of the European Union to Georgia on October 29 announced the dispatch of a European Diplomatic Watch. More than 70 teams will aim to visit over 1,000 polling stations across Georgia during election day.
The election will be conducted under a transitory law, with a revised Constitution awaited. A total of 120 of parliament’s 150 MPs will be elected through proportional party lists, while the other 30 will be elected under single-mandate majority voting. Previously, the ratio was 77 to 73. Another key provision is that there will be no entry threshold for small parties seeking parliamentary representation. A larger number of small parties are therefore likely to obtain a voice in the chamber.
Some 66 parties have registered to compete for parliamentary seats. A total of 490 candidates will be running in 30 majoritarian districts.
2.2​ ​Growing number of governments consider second lockdowns to tackle autumn COVID-19 wave
New coronavirus (COVID-19) cases continued their rise in several Central and Southeast European countries, in line with a sharp rise across Europe, data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) shows.
New restrictions are being introduced, and several governments have warned they will return to lockdown if cases continue to increase sharply, despite the expected damage to their economies.
According to the WHO’s latest epidemiological update, globally over 2mn new cases were reported in the seven days to October 27. As the global centre of
7​ GEORGIA Country Report ​November 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com