Presidential Election Campaign Begins Tomorrow

Georgians will elect a new president on October 28. The election campaign period will officially begin tomorrow, August 29, although leading candidates have already been on the campaign trail for weeks. In the official campaign period, a set of rules, standards and restrictions will be in place for political parties, candidates, public officials, local self-governments, political officials and media.

There is now a total of 31 prospective candidates for president. The deadline to register as a presidential candidate is September 8.

Several opposition political parties sent an open letter today to the Central Election Commission (CEC). National Democrats, European Georgia, National Democratic Party (NDP), United National Movement, Free Democrats, Movement - State for People, Republican Party, Alliance for Freedom and the Labor Party called on the CEC to ensure elections are free and fair. The letter writers also noted that they support reforming the election administration process in the future.

The letter also listed several recommendations, including, “Protect the principle of competition when staffing district election commissions, including through spreading information about the competition process, using national or regional TV channels, print and Internet resources; Write and publicize specific and clear selection criteria that will be permanently used in the selection process of professional members to the district election commissions; Hold interviews during the selection of members of district commissions and publicly broadcast the interviews through the Central Election Commission website. Broadcast the Central Election Commission sessions through the Commission website.”

During the campaign period, national media broadcasters must be impartial and fair in their coverage of the campaign and political issues. Election legislation stipulates that any broadcaster who covers the campaign period must broadcast pre-election debates without discrimination against or in favor of any candidate, and ensure equal participation.

Equal and free campaign advertisements are also provided for all candidates participating in the elections, starting September 8.

By Samantha Guthrie

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