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| This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Abkhazia |
| See also |
The elections for the 5th convocation of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia were held in two rounds on 10 and 24 March 2012.
The 5th convocation of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia has been in place since 3 April 2012.
The People's Assembly of the Republic of Abkhazia is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Abkhazia.
This was the first parliamentary election since the August 2008 war and the subsequent diplomatic recognition of Abkhazia by Russia, Nicaragua, Nauru, Venezuela, Vanuatu and Tuvalu.
Russia, officially the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country in Eastern Europe and North Asia. At 17,125,200 square kilometres (6,612,100 sq mi), Russia is the largest country in the world by area, covering more than one-eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area, and the ninth most populous, with about 146.77 million people as of 2019, excluding Crimea. About 77% of the population live in the western, European part of the country. Russia's capital, Moscow, is the largest metropolitan area in Europe proper and one of the largest cities in the world; other major cities include Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg and Nizhny Novgorod. Extending across the entirety of Northern Asia and much of Eastern Europe, Russia spans eleven time zones and incorporates a wide range of environments and landforms. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares land borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North Korea. It shares maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk and the U.S. state of Alaska across the Bering Strait. However, Russia recognises two more countries that border it, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, both of which are internationally recognized as parts of Georgia.
Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the largest country in the Central American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the northwest, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Managua is the country's capital and largest city and is also the third-largest city in Central America, behind Tegucigalpa and Guatemala City. The multi-ethnic population of six million includes people of indigenous, European, African, and Asian heritage. The main language is Spanish. Indigenous tribes on the Mosquito Coast speak their own languages and English.
Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country in Micronesia, a subregion of Oceania, in the Central Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Kiribati, 300 kilometres (190 mi) to the east. It further lies northwest of Tuvalu, north of the Solomon Islands, east-northeast of Papua New Guinea, southeast of the Federated States of Micronesia and south of the Marshall Islands. With only a 21-square-kilometre (8.1 sq mi) area, Nauru is the third-smallest state on the list of countries and dependencies by area behind Vatican City and Monaco, making it the smallest state in the South Pacific Ocean, the smallest island state, and the smallest republic. Its population is 11,347, making it the third smallest on the list of countries and dependencies by population, after the Vatican and Tuvalu.
On 22 February, President Alexander Ankvab survived an assassination attempt as his motorcade came under attack on the road from Gudauta to Sukhumi. Though he survived, two bodyguards were killed. Ankvab blamed "mafia, criminal groups" and the "political circles" around them for the attack. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that it was an attempt to destabilise the country's political situation prior to the election. [1]
Aleksandr Ankvab is an Abkhaz politician and businessman who was President of Abkhazia from May 29, 2011, until his resignation on June 1, 2014. Under President Sergei Bagapsh, he previously served as Prime Minister from 2005 to 2010 and Vice-President from 2010 to 2011.
Gudauta is a town in Abkhazia, Georgia and a centre of the eponymous district. It is situated on the Black Sea, 37 km northwest to Sukhumi, the capital of Abkhazia.
Sukhumi or Sokhumi is a city on the Black Sea coast. It is the capital of the breakaway Republic of Abkhazia which has controlled it since the 1992-93 war in Abkhazia, although most of the international community considers it legally part of Georgia.
Candidates could be nominated by initiative groups and by officially registered political parties (in at most a third of all constituencies, that is 11). [2]
In total, 156 candidates were nominated. 35 candidates were nominated by a political party and 126 by an initiative group [3] (with some overlap). Of the candidates nominated by a political party, 11 were nominated by United Abkhazia, [2] 11 by the Forum for the National Unity of Abkhazia, [4] 7 by the Communist Party [5] and 6 by the Party for the Economic Development of Abkhazia. [6] The Central Electoral Commission approved the registration of 151 candidates. Of these, 3 withdrew their candidacy before election day. [7] [8] Of the remaining 148 candidates, 125 were ethnically Abkhaz, nine Armenian, eight Russian, two Greek, two Georgian, one Ossetian and one Kabardin. 16 were female. [9]
United Abkhazia is a political party in Abkhazia. United Abkhazia was founded on March 25, 2004 as a socio-political movement, with the specific goal of presenting a single opposition candidate for the October 2004 presidential elections.
The Forum for the National Unity of Abkhazia is a prominent oppositional political party in Abkhazia. It is led by Former Prime Minister, Vice President and President Elect Raul Khajimba.
The Communist Party of Abkhazia (CPA) is a political party in Abkhazia, internationally recognized part of Georgia. The party leader is Lev Shamba.
On 6 March, the Russian Community of the Republic of Abkhazia called upon voters in constituencies 7, 11 and 23 to vote for the Russian candidates Natalya Kayun, Andrei Kulikov and Viktor Vasilev, the first two of which had previously been nominated by United Abkhazia. [10]
There were 46 [11] -100 international observers from nine countries. [12] According to the CEC, the monitors would be from Russia (from governmental and non-governmental organisations), the Commonwealth of Independent States, South Ossetia, Transnistria and Nagorno-Karabakh. Other states whose monitors were invited but had not confirmed attendance are: Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Tuvalu. Georgia steadfastly refused to observe the election on the premise that they claim Abkhazia is under "de facto Russian occupation" and that Georgian refugees who fled Abkhazia (by some accounts up to 50% of the population) are ineligible to vote. [9]
There were 174 pollings stations. [12] First round turnout was 44.5%. [1] Only 13 constituencies achieved a majority to choose a MP; the other 22 constituencies would face a run-off. [13]
Second round turnout was 46.21% in 20 constituencies. Of the 40 candidates for the 20 seats in the second round three of nine incumbents held on to their seats. Amongst the 20 members were three MPs from People’s Unity Forum of Abkhazia, two from United Abkhazia the 15 from civic initiative groups. The result will be finalised when approved by a court. [14] Amongst minority representatives, Vagharshak Kosyan and Robert Yalyan were joined by journalist Levon Galustyan to have a total of three Armenian MPs, according to Khachik Minosyan, the Chairman of the Union of Abkhazia Armenians. Galustyan said the election was flawless and praised his fellow Armenian challenger from district 20. [15]
The first round of the election in constituency no. 1 was declared invalid because the turnout had failed to surpass the threshold of 25%. On election day, the Constituency Election Commission originally declared that turnout had been 25.01%. However, after a complaint by two candidates that a mistake had been made in the calculation of the turnout, the Central Election Commission ordered the Constituency Election Commission to recheck the protocols. The corrected turnout was found to be 24.9%, invalidating the election. [16]
On 19 March the Central Election Commission announced that the rerun would be held on 6 May. [17] Four out of seven of the original candidates were nominated again: Daur Achugba, Roland Gamgia, Yekaterina Glazkova and Talikh Khvatish. They were joined by one new candidate, businessman Beslan Eshba. [18] All were successfully registered. [19] [20] Eshba won the rerun with 1932 out of 3413 votes (56.61%), against 782 for Gamgia, 520 for Khvatysh, 47 for Achugba and 43 for Glazkova. Turnout was significantly higher than during the original election, at 44.94%. [21]
On 29 March, the Supreme Court of Abkhazia invalidated the election in constituency no. 21 and ordered a rerun. The original count had given Aida Ashuba a slim first round majority of 401 votes out of 795 (50.44%), but after a complaint by the campaign team of runner up Valeri Kvarchia, the election commission of precinct 1 held a recount. In the recount, 46 more ballots were found to be invalid, causing Ashuba's vote share to fall below 50% and making a second round run-off between Ashuba and Kvarchia necessary. Ashuba then issued a complaint with the Central Election Commission as his observers had not been present during the recount. The Central Election Commission agreed with the complaint and requested the precinct and constituency election commissions to uphold the original count. When the local election commission refused to comply, the Central Election Commission brought the matter to the Supreme Court. [22] [23]
During the court proceedings it was established that contrary to election law, the ballot bag had not been sealed, and that during the recount, supporters of Kvarchia as well as Security Council and Interior Ministry officials had been present. The representative of the office of the Procecutor General argued that this constituted a breach of election law, that the irregularities in the transport and storage of election ballots meant that determining the correct election result was now impossible, and that both voting protocols should be declared invalid. [23]
The repeat election was set for 20 May, with the nomination period running from 31 March to 20 April and the registration period from 20 April to 10 May. [24] Both Aida Ashuba and Valeri Kvarchia were nominated again by initiative groups. [25] They were joined by Givi Adleiba, who had not originally participated. [26] All three candidates were successfully registered. [20] [27] The rerun saw a much higher turnout than the original election of 1271 from a total of 1770 registered voters (71.8%). No candidate managed to score a first round victory in the repeat election as Kvarchia received 573 votes, Ashuba 502 and Adleiba 159 (37 votes being invalid). [28] In the second round on 4 June, Kvarchia defeated Ashuba with 679 votes against 623, out of a total of 1334 — there had been 1779 registered voters. [29]
The following table presents an overview of all the candidates, [30] the votes they received in the first round, [31] the second round run-off winners [32] and the reruns. [21] [28]
| Elections for the fifth convocation of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia — candidates and results by constituency (vertical) and registration (horizontal) | ||||||||||
| # | 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | 6. | 7. | 8. | 9. | 10. |
| 1 | Daur Achugba | Pavel Bganba | Roland Gamgia | Yekaterina Glazkova | Aidar Kvitsinia | Eduard Keshanidi | Talikh Khvatish | |||
| Daur Achugba | Roland Gamgia | Yekaterina Glazkova | Talikh Khvatish | Beslan Eshba | ||||||
| 2 | Akhra Abukhba | Fazylbei Avidzba | Akhra Aristava | Aslan Kobakhia | Vakhtang Pipia | Temur Tabagua | Dmitri Shlarba | |||
| 3 | Sergei Arshba | Mukhamed Bli | Ilia Gamisonia | Arkadi Jinjia | Satbei Kvitsinia | Rita Lolua | Irina Mikvabia | Anatoli Pilia | Vianor Tuzhba | Beslan Tsvinaria |
| 4 | Valeri Agrba | Vianor Ashba | Batal Kobakhia | Amiran Lagvilava | Lasha Sakania | Leila Tania | Ivan Tarba | |||
| 5 | Valeri Ardzinba | Mzia Beia | Akhra Bzhania | Iakub Lakoba | Daur Tarba | Andrei Tuzhba | ||||
| 6 | Irina Agrba | Astamur Adleiba | Nadir Bitiev | Marina Gumba | Artur Mikvabia | |||||
| 7 | Astamur Kakalia | Natalia Kaiun | Pavel Leshchuk | Ruslan Kharabua | David Chagava | Zaur Iazychba | ||||
| 8 | Stanislav Aiba | Beslan Gubaz | Almasbei Kchach | Dona Malia | ||||||
| 9 | Astan Agrba | Valeri Bganba | ||||||||
| 10 | Shota Bagatelia | Nodari Kvitsinia | Anzor Kokoskeria | Tamaz Khetsia | ||||||
| 11 | Vitali Azhiba | Leonti Bazba | Beslan Bartsits | Renad Benia | Andrei Kulikov | Tatiana Pavlova | Aleksei Romanenko | Gennadi Sichinava | Vadim Smyr | |
| 12 | Aram Kosyan | Vagarshak Kosyan | Valeri Mayromyan | |||||||
| 13 | Georgi Agrba | Astamur Aiba | Valeri Bartsyts | Beslan Dbar | Kherson Dashelia | |||||
| 14 | Guram Barganjia | Aleksei Tania | ||||||||
| 15 | Aslan Lakoba | Mikhail Sangulia | Remzik Chirikbaia | |||||||
| 16 | Zaur Avidzba | Viacheslav Ardzinba | Anri Jergenia | Leonid Chamagua | ||||||
| 17 | Givi Gabnia | Dmitri Gunba | Lev Shamba | |||||||
| 18 | Akhra Pachulia | Vitali Smyr | (Robert Tsuguryan) | |||||||
| 19 | Fazlibei Avidzba | Zhuzhuna Bigvava | ||||||||
| 20 | Valeri Bganba | Levon Galustyan | Farat Mikaelyan | Galust Trapizonyan | ||||||
| 21 | Aida Ashuba | Valeri Kvarchia | Diana Pilia | Dmitri Sevastidi | ||||||
| Givi Adleiba | Aida Ashuba | Valeri Kvarchia | ||||||||
| 22 | Albert Kapikyan | (Ardash Markosyan) | Sergei Matosyan | Robert Yaylyan | ||||||
| 23 | Viktor Vasilev | David Gabnia | Aleksandr Studenikin | Said Kharazia | ||||||
| 24 | Ziulfi Achuzba | Aleksei Lataria | Adgur Kharazia | |||||||
| 25 | Daur Arshba | Zaur Zarandia | Yuri Zukhba | |||||||
| 26 | Zaur Adleiba | Khrips Jopua | Temur Logua | Daur Tsvizhba | ||||||
| 27 | Nugzar Ashuba | Appolon Gurgulia | Almas Kvaratskhelia | Klara Sakania | Ramiz Tabagua | |||||
| 28 | Andrei Anua | Tamaz Gogia | Adgur Kakoba | (Sultan Katsia) | Temur Kvitsinia | |||||
| 29 | Aleksandr Adleiba | Grigori Latsuzhba | Otar Tsvizhba | |||||||
| 30 | Anzor Argun | Daur Ferizba | Raul Khajimba | |||||||
| 31 | Kan Kvarchia | Tengiz Malandzia | Alkhaz Manargia | Aleksandr Chengelia | ||||||
| 32 | Beslan Bagatelia | Irakli Bzhinava | Emma Gamisonia | Joni Gularia | Vadim Kvachakhia | |||||
| 33 | Akhra Kvekveskiri | Ruslan Kishmaria | Avtandil Chkadua | |||||||
| 34 | Ameran Akhsalba | Sergei Berulava | Nodik Kvitsinia | |||||||
| 35 | Nato Butbaia | Bezhan Ubiria | ||||||||
The head of the Central Election Commission, Batal Tabagua, said that since voter turnout exceeded the 25% threshold the election was declared valid. [12] He also added the election was "calm and normal." [1] The CEC spokesman added that "there weren’t observed any violations that could affect the people’s free will." [13] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to claims of the election being "illegitimate" by NATO, the U.S. Department of State and its embassy in Georgia, the EU delegation to Georgia, PACE co-reporters on Georgia and the Foreign Ministries of Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland and Azerbaijan as them having "not see[n] fit to support their conclusions by any legal or factual evidence. Such conclusions could have been made only from direct observation of preparation and conduct of voting in the elections to the People's Assembly of the Republic of Abkhazia. However, none of the above-mentioned countries and organisations sent their observers here, though the Central Election Commission of Abkhazia would have definitely provided them everything necessary for quality monitoring of the voting process." [33] It also added that all the observers, including from the UN-member states of Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Tuvalu, as well as the European parliament and international NGOs confirmed the election was in line with international democratic standards and that "people of Abkhazia recognised the legitimacy of voting procedures in their state long ago." [34]
Sergei Shamba is a senior politician from Abkhazia. He is currently a member of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia and Chairman of United Abkhazia. He was Prime Minister of Abkhazia under President Sergei Bagapsh from 13 February 2010 until 27 September 2011. Between 1997 and 2010 he had been Minister for Foreign Affairs under both Bagapsh and his predecessor Vladislav Ardzinba, with only a half-year interruption in 2004. Shamba has twice unsuccessfully participated in Presidential elections, in 2004 and 2011. He has been a staunch proponent for dialogue between Abkhazia and Georgia.
Beslan Butba is a businessman and a former Prime Minister of Abkhazia. He owns Abkhazia's only private television station Abaza TV and is the chairman of the Party of the Economic Development of Abkhazia. Butba was an unsuccessful candidate in the December 2009 presidential election.
On 12 February 2011, Abkhazia held local elections for the 5th convocations of its local assemblies.
A presidential election was held in the Republic of Abkhazia on 26 August 2011. This was the fifth such election since the post of President of the Republic of Abkhazia was created in 1994. The election was held to elect the successor of president Sergei Bagapsh who died in office on 29 May 2011.
The 4th convocation of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia was in place from 2007 until 2012.
The 3rd convocation of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia was in place from 2002 until 2007.
The 5th convocation of the Sukhumi City Council has been in office since 10 March 2011.
Valeri Ramshukhovich Bganba is an Abkhazian politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Abkhazia since 18 September 2018. Prior to that he was the Speaker of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia from 2012 until 2017. He was elected as speaker on 3 April 2012 and was succeeded by Valery Kvarchia on 12 April 2017. Bganba became acting President on 1 June 2014, following the resignation of Alexander Ankvab as a result of the 2014 Abkhazian political crisis. On 25 September 2014 he was replaced by Raul Khajimba, the winner of the presidential elections on 24 August.
Events in the year 2012 in Abkhazia.
Zaur Avidzba (1953–2015) was a politician and businessman from Abkhazia who was murdered in 2015.
On 3 April 2016, Abkhazia held local elections for the 6th convocations of its local assemblies in all districts except Gali.
The 6th convocation of the Sukhumi City Council has been in office since 13 April 2016.
Almas Japua is a deputy of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia. Japua was by-elected on 31 August 2014 in constituency no. 26 after sitting MP Beslan Butba had been appointed as acting Vice Premier in the aftermath of the 2014 Abkhazian revolution. Japua was nominated by an initiative group on 12 July and formally registered as candidate on 1 August. He defeated his opponent Amiran Kakalia with 889 votes to 848, out of 1761 votes cast. On 1 September, Japua was officially registered as a member of Parliament.
Beslan Eshba is a vice premier of Abkhazia and the head of a sociopolitical organization Apsadgyl. Prior to his current position, he was a deputy commander in the Sukhumi battalion and an advisor to the President of Abkhazia.
Aslan Kobakhia is one of three current Vice Premiers and the current Minister for Internal Affairs of Abkhazia.
Daur Arshba is a politician from Abkhazia. He is the Head of the Presidential Administration, having been appointed by President Raul Khajimba on 10 October 2016, and Chairman of the pro-government Forum for the National Unity of Abkhazia. In the past, he has served as Vice Speaker of the People's Assembly and as Head of Tkvarcheli District. Following the death of Gennadi Gagulia on 8 September 2018, Arshba was appointed Acting Prime Minister of Abkhazia, a position he held until 18 September 2018.
Kan Kvarchia is a member of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia.
Legislative elections were held in Russia on 18 September 2016. On 5 October 2016 Sergey Naryshkin resigned because of his appointment as Director of SVR. On 14 June, the Central Election Commission scheduled an election in the Kingisepp constituency for 10 September 2017.
Legislative elections were held in Russia on 18 September 2016. On 10 June 2017 Vladimir Zhutenkov resigned. On 14 June, the Central Election Commission scheduled a by-election in the Bryansk constituency for 10 September 2017.
