Thousands protest in Georgian capital after pro-Russian party wins parliamentary vote

Thousands of people protest in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi after the country’s electoral commission announced that the ruling pro-Russian Georgian Dream party had won 54% of the vote, keeping them in power. The pro-EU president, Salome Zourabichvili, declared that she did not recognise the election results and told protesters that their vote was ‘stolen’. The opposition refused to concede defeat and accused the ruling party of a ‘constitutional coup’, as the results dealt a significant blow to the country’s long-held aspirations for EU membership.

Georgia’s pro-EU opposition calls for protest over ‘rigged’ election result