The Georgian Parliament approved the amendments to the Election Code on Wednesday.
Modern.az reports that, according to the amendments, voting in parliamentary elections will only be organized within the country's territory, and polling stations will not be opened for Georgian citizens living abroad.
One of the authors of the bill, Archil Gorduladze, chairman of the parliament's legal affairs committee, stated that the next parliamentary elections, to be held in 2028, will only take place within Georgia. According to him, this decision aims to prevent possible interference from abroad and is directed at limiting the ability of voters living outside the country to influence the voting process.
According to official data, during the 2024 parliamentary elections, 60 polling stations operated outside Georgia's borders, and approximately 34,000 citizens voted at those stations. Within the country, the number of participants in the elections exceeded two million.
Currently, the Georgian Parliament consists of 150 deputies. Of these, 89 represent the ruling “Georgian Dream” party, and 12 represent the opposition “For Georgia” party. However, 49 deputies from other opposition parties have renounced their mandates, claiming that the elections held in October 2024 were rigged.
