Ruling party member claims he placed multiple ballots in box on election day due to “opposition provocation”

Rovshan Isakandarov, the deputy chairman of the Marneuli City Assembly from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday claimed his actions at the 69th polling station in Marneuli during the Saturday’s general elections, where he was filmed placing multiple ballots into a ballot box, were a reaction to “well-planned provocation by the opposition”.

Isakandarov claimed in his social media post, “my goal was not to try to falsify the elections,” emphasizing that he felt compelled to act after witnessing opposition representatives allegedly violating election rules.

Isakandarov accused the opposition of “distorting video evidence taken out of context to paint him as a fraud” and described a scene of chaos at the polling station, asserting that opposition members engaged in “improper campaigning” and obstructed supporters of the ruling party from casting their votes.

“I couldn’t contain my emotions and angrily took the ballots out of their hands and put them in the ballot box,” he explained.

The election administration suspended voting at the polling stations after the video went viral and the police are now investigating the incident.