Khadjimba declared president of Abkhazia amid opponents' protest

The incumbent president, Raul Khadjimba, has gained a thousand votes more than Alkhas Kvitsiniya, the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Abkhazia has announced today. Alkhas Kvitsiniya has promised to challenge the CEC's decision in court.

According to the CEC, in the second round 39,741 voters (47.38%) voted for Raul Khadjimba, and 38,742 voters (46.19%) voted for Alkhas Kvitsiniya. The voter turnout made 65.98%.

Not a single written application about violations has arrived, Tamaz Gogiya, the CEC Chairman, said at the today's briefing, adding that the CEC will announce the final totals of the election within three days.

Alkhas Kvitsiniya has stated that he will challenge the election outcomes in court, the "Sputnik Abkhazia" has informed today.

Today, the republic's political parties and public organizations have released a joint appeal to the CEC of Abkhazia, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

"According to our information, as a result of the presidential election held on September 08, 2019, none of the candidates gained the necessary number of votes to be elected. In order to avoid unpredictable consequences that could be detrimental to our country, the CEC must declare the election failed," says the appeal.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on September 9, 2019 at 02:46 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.