Papuashvili calls for investigation into US role in Georgia’s 2020 election controversy

Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday called for an investigation into the US government’s alleged involvement in the aftermath of Georgia’s 2020 parliamentary elections.

In his social media post, the official criticized the “resurgence of interest” from the US Congress’s Helsinki Commission, framing it as a “reminder of unresolved issues in Georgia-US relations”.

Papuashvili highlighted the role of the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED), a US-funded non-governmental organization, in releasing what he claimed were “false” results of the parallel vote tabulation (PVT) during the 2020 elections. He claimed the results fueled political unrest, led to demands for extraordinary elections, and harmed the country’s democratic reputation.

He accused USAID of being aware of the false PVT results and intentionally withholding this information from Georgian authorities. Papuashvili also said the then-director of ISFED, Elene Nizharadze, was later dismissed but reappointed to a position in Montenegro with the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations, which, according to Papuashvili, shared the same funding source as ISFED.

Papuashvili also questioned the knowledge of the US Ambassador to Georgia, Kelly Degnan, at the time, suggesting the ambassador may have concealed crucial information during mediation efforts between the Georgian government and the opposition.

The speaker called on the US Congress to investigate the situation and “ensure transparency”, emphasizing that ignoring the concerns could strain the strategic partnership between Georgia and the US.