Georgian president 're-elected'

[frigidmagi]

BBC

Mikhail Saakashvili has been re-elected president of Georgia after a snap poll, preliminary official results suggest.

The election commission said he won 52.8% of the vote, with most ballots counted - indicating he will not have to contest a second-round run-off.

The opposition has already alleged the vote was rigged and mounted protests in the capital, Tbilisi.

But monitors from the OSCE and Council of Europe said the vote was democratic and the outcome should be respected.

Officials said the 52.8% figure was a tally from polling stations in Georgia. Some overseas results were still awaited.

"According to these results, there is a fairly high probability that everything will be finished in the first round," central electoral commission chairman Levan Tarkhnishvili said.

Mr Saakashvili's main contender, Levan Gachechiladze, came second with 27% of the vote, officials declared.

'Triumphant step'

Earlier in the day, Mr Gachechiladze told thousands of supporters in the capital Tbilisi that results had been "falsified".

In a snowbound square on Sunday, the Orthodox Christmas Eve, he told the crowd: "We will defend our vote by legal means."

Both Mr Saakashvili and Mr Gachechiladze celebrated midnight Mass on Sunday evening, standing near each other in a Tbilisi church.

Opposition protesters in Georgia 06/01/08
Thousands of opposition protesters disputed the result

Mr Saakashvili appears to be waiting for the results to be made fully official before claiming victory, says the BBC's Matthew Collin in Tbilisi.

But the president was given a significant boost when international observer missions dismissed allegations of fraud.

US Congressman Alcee Hastings of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), said: "I perceive this election as a valid expression of the choice of the Georgian people."

He said there had been some shortcomings - notably that Mr Saakashvili's campaign had overlapped with state activities, and this "contributed to an inequitable campaign environment".

But he praised the "calm and peaceful atmosphere" during the election, in which he said "democracy took a triumphant step".

Matyas Eorsi, the head of a monitoring group from the Council of Europe, also endorsed the election, adding: "I would like to make a plea to all political actors to respect the legitimacy of the election for the stability of Georgia."

The United States urged the opposition to respect the monitors' verdict.

Russia, however, called that verdict "hasty" and "superficial".

Nato issue

Mr Saakashvili called the early election in an attempt to prove his democratic credentials after huge opposition protests were suppressed in November.


Georgians in Tbilisi talk about their voting intentions

In pictures

Georgians were also asked to vote on whether they should have a parliamentary election in the coming months, and whether the country should join Nato. The results of those ballots are not yet clear.

Mr Saakashvili, a US-educated lawyer, came to power after street protests in 2003, dubbed the Rose Revolution.

His term as president has seen Georgia strengthen its ties with Nato and the European Union.

But relations with Moscow have soured and Georgia's economy has been badly hit by a Russian ban on Georgian goods.

I've been told that the OSCE and Euro Council are both believable organizations, from the look of this I would say there was no vote rigging.