Race for majoritarian MP seats will go into second round in 51 out of total 73 single-mandate constituencies, where no candidate is garnering more than 50% of votes, according to early official results of the October 8 parliamentary elections.

GDDG ruling party said it is eyeing constitutional majority in the new Parliament by winning most of the runoffs.

The ruling party is already winning majority of 77 seats, which were up for grabs under the proportional, party-list nationwide vote.

But the final makeup of the 150-member Parliament in Georgia’s mixed electoral system will only be defined after the second round runoffs in the 51 single-member districts.

GDDG majoritarian MP candidates are winning outright victory without requiring second round in at least 22 districts, according to partial official results.

GDDG candidates will feature in all, but one, 51 runoffs; the ruling party had its candidates in 72 out of 73 single-mandate districts.
 
If GDDG wins at least 42 of those 50 runoffs, the ruling party will likely be on track to gaining constitutional majority of 113 seats in the new Parliament – something the party is far short of in the outgoing legislative body. The estimation is still tentative as it relies on partial election results.

“We are convinced that we will win all the second round runoffs in the single-mandate constituencies and the Georgian Dream will win constitutional majority in the Parliament,” ruling party’s executive secretary, Irakli Kobakhidze, said on October 9.

In most of the single-mandate constituencies, where the races were pushed into the second round, GDDG candidates will face contenders from the UNM opposition party, which has claimed that the vote was rigged and is now mulling over its future steps.

The race appears to be going into the second round in the district No.66 in Zugdidi municipality, where UNM MP candidate, Sandra Roelofs, Georgia’s ex-first lady, is in a close race with GDDG candidate Edisher Toloraia, who is leading by the margin of just 153 votes.

In the town of Gori, ex-defense minister Irakli Alasania, whose Free Democrats party is failing to clear 5% threshold in party-list vote to enter the parliament, is close to pushing the race for majoritarian MP into the second round against first-placed GDDG candidate, who has 33.5% of votes. Alasania has 461-vote lead over third-placed ex-defense minister Irakli Okruashvili.

Free Democrats majoritarian MP candidate also made it to the second round in Chiatura, where he will face the first-placed GDDG candidate.

In Khashuri, a candidate from Industrialists-Our Homeland election bloc won the first round with 32% of votes and will face the second-placed GDDG candidate, MP Valeri Gelashvili, in the runoff.