Displaying items by tag: allegations of fraud

State prosecutors in Georgia are investigating possible election fraud following opposition claims that the results of the recent parliamentary elections were falsified. They will question president Salome Zourabichvili, a vocal critic of the election process; she has declared the results invalid due to a ‘Russian special operation’ – a charge denied by Russia. Joe Biden and the EU have expressed concerns over irregularities and democratic decline in Georgia. Although the ruling Georgian Dream party was declared the winner with 54% of the vote, the opposition condemned the results as a ‘constitutional coup’. International observers noted instances of voter intimidation, bribery, and ballot stuffing, but did not go as far as labelling the election as rigged. The electoral commission has defended the election as fair, but said that it would conduct a recount at a small number of randomly selected polling stations.

Peru's presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori reacted at a press conference in Lima, the day after an election run-off. The right-wing candidate, who is running for president for the third time, alleges there have been ‘signs of fraud’ in the run-off election. With 97.3% of the votes counted her left-wing rival, Pedro Castillo, pulled past her in the vote count with a lead of less than 0.5% points. In a news conference, Ms Fujimori alleged that there had been a strategy by Peru Libre, Mr Castillo’s party, to distort and delay the results which reflect the popular will. Ms Fujimori is the daughter of former President Alberto Fujimori, who is serving a 25-year-jail sentence for corruption and human rights abuses. She said if elected she will pardon her father, a deeply divisive figure - praised for his fight against Shining Path guerrillas but denounced for abuses including forced sterilisations of indigenous women.