Home > 5 Referendum/Consultation > GEORGIA - Election Code
 
 
 
Download file    
 
 
Article 2
 

Definition of terms


For the purposes of this Law, the terms used herein have the following meanings:
a) referendum – a nation-wide polling by secret ballot aimed at overall, equal, and direct expression of will to decide especially important national issues, which is conducted throughout the territory of Georgia;
b) plebiscite – a nation-wide polling by secret ballot for identifying the opinion of voters or part of voters concerning especially important national issues, results of which are of recommendatory character for the public authorities;
c) elections – electoral process, the objective and outcome of which is to elect public officials and representative bodies of public authority;
d) general elections – regular or extraordinary elections:


d.a) regular elections – elections held because of the expiration of the term of office of a representative body of public authority or a public official within the time frame defined by the Constitution of Georgia, this Law, the Constitutions of the Autonomous
Republics of Abkhazia and Ajara, and the respective laws;


d.b) extraordinary elections – elections held as a result of pre-term termination of the tenure of a representative body of public authority or a public official;


e) by-elections – elections held under the majoritarian electoral system in the respective electoral district as determined by this Law in order to fill a vacant seat of the representative body of the state authority;
f) re-run elections – repeat elections held as determined for regular elections, provided that:


f.a) one candidate runs in elections held under the majoritarian electoral system and his/her candidacy is withdrawn as defined by this Law;
f.b) none of electoral subjects running in the elections held under the proportional electoral system passes an electoral threshold or failure of elections is declared in more than half of the electoral districts;
f.c) election results are declared void by a court decision;


g) repeat voting – voting conducted again in the electoral precinct(s) where polling results are declared void, or voting conducted again in the entire multi-seat electoral district based on party lists where no party/electoral bloc has been awarded a seat;

h) second round of elections (run-off) – voting conducted in cases and within the time frame defined in this Law, when a winner cannot be determined in the first round of elections;
i) election (polling) day – the day of holding general elections, by-elections, or re-run elections, as well as run-off or repeat voting;


i1) electoral/referendum period – a period of time from the day when a legal act issued on calling an election/referendum comes
into force through the day when a summary protocol of the final results of the election/referendum is published by a respective election commission.


j) elections held under the proportional electoral system – election of members of the Parliament (MPs) of Georgia and for members of a local self-government representative body Sakrebulo based on party lists;
k) elections held under the majoritarian electoral system – election of members of the Parliament (MPs) of Georgia and for members of a local self-government representative body Sakrebulo according to single-seat electoral districts;

l) suffrage – active and passive right to vote;
m) active suffrage – the right of a citizen of Georgia to participate, by casting a vote, in general elections, referenda, and plebiscites held for electing the people’s representatives to the representative body of public authority and for holding public offices;
n) passive suffrage – the right of a citizen of Georgia to run for the representative body of public authority and for public office;


n1) votes of participants in the elections/referendum – the number of votes to be determined by the sum of valid ballot papers in a ballot box/boxes and which does not include votes received through ballot papers declared void.


l) suffrage – active and passive right to vote;
m) active suffrage – the right of a citizen of Georgia to participate, by casting a vote, in general elections, referenda, and plebiscites held for electing the people’s representatives to the representative body of public authority and for holding public offices;
n) passive suffrage – the right of a citizen of Georgia to run for the representative body of public authority and for public office;


n1) votes of participants in the elections/referendum – the number of votes to be determined by the sum of valid ballot papers in a ballot box/boxes and which does not include votes received through ballot papers declared void.


o) electoral registration – registration of parties, electoral blocs, initiative groups of voters and candidates by the chairperson of the respective election commission in order to obtain the right to run in elections;



p) candidate for electoral subject – a person nominated for registration in the respective election commission to run in elections; representative body, or a candidate for public office registered by the chairperson of a respective election commission;


q) electoral subject – a party, electoral bloc, or an initiative group of voters, or a candidate for member of public authority representative body, or a candidate for public office registered by the chairperson of a respective election commission;


q1) qualified electoral subject – a qualified party or an electoral bloc registered under this Law that includes a qualified party;


r) Electoral Administration of Georgia – the Central Election Commission of Georgia (‘the CEC’) and its staff, the Supreme Election Commissions of the Autonomous Republics of Abkhazia and Ajara (‘the SEC’) and their staff, the District Election Commissions (DECs) and the Precinct Election Commissions (PECs);


s) Electoral Administration officer – an election commission member and staff;
t) party – a political union of citizens acting under the Organic Law of Georgia on Political Unions of Citizens that is registered by the chairperson of the CEC to run in elections;
t1) qualified party – a party financed from the State Budget of Georgia under Article 30 of the Organic Law of Georgia on Political Unions of Citizens;
u) electoral bloc – a union of two or more parties registered by the chairperson of the CEC;


v) candidate for President of Georgia – a citizen of Georgia nominated by a party or an initiative group of voters registered by the chairperson of the CEC to run for the President of Georgia;


w) candidate for Mayor – a citizen of Georgia registered by the chairperson of the relevant election commission to run for Mayor;
x) candidate nominated under a party list – a citizen of Georgia entered in a party list registered by the chairperson of the respective election commission to run in elections of the Parliament of Georgia or for a municipality representative body Sakrebulo;
y) majoritarian candidate – a citizen of Georgia nominated in an electoral district by a party/electoral bloc/initiative group of voters registered by the chairperson of the respective election commission to run in elections of the Parliament of Georgia or for a municipality representative body Sakrebulo;  


z) electoral district – an operation area (administrative electoral division) where elections and referenda are organised and held;


z1) majoritarian electoral district – a single-seat electoral district established for the election of the Parliament of Georgia;


z2) local majoritarian electoral district – a single-seat electoral district established for the election of the members of a local selfgovernment representative body Sakrebulo under the majoritarian system;


z3) electoral precinct – administrative electoral division established as determined by the legislation of Georgia for polling and vote counting during elections or referenda;


z4) local self-government representative body Sakrebulo – the Sakrebulo of the capital of Georgia – Tbilisi, the Sakrebulo of a selfgoverning community, and the Sakrebulo of a self-governing city;
z41) municipality executive body – a Mayor;


z5) political official – President of Georgia, a Member of Parliament of Georgia, the Prime Minister of Georgia, other members of the Government of Georgia and their deputies, members of the Supreme Representative Bodies of the Autonomous Republics of Abkhazia and Ajara, heads of the Governments of the Autonomous Republics of Abkhazia and Ajara, a member of a local selfgovernment representative body Sakrebulo and the head of an executive body, and a State Representative;


z6) political/pre-election advertising – commercial broadcast by mass media (‘the media’) aimed at promoting/hindering the election of an electoral subject, where the electoral subject and/or its sequence number are displayed and which contains the signs of election campaign or appeals for or against the issue put forward for referendum/plebiscite;


z7) election campaign – a set of measures carried out by an electoral subject/candidate for electoral subject aimed at running in and winning elections;
z8) canvassing – appeal to voters in favour of or against an electoral subject/candidate, as well as any public action facilitating or impeding its election and/or containing signs of election campaign, including the participation in organisation/conduct of preelectoral events, preservation or dissemination of election materials, work on the list of supporters, presence in the representations of political parties;
z9) election/referendum campaign expense – the sum of funds of an electoral subject/referendum participant for an election/referendum campaign, as well as all goods and services obtained free of charge (reflected in market prices), except for free air time cost as determined by this Law;
z10) information on the election/referendum campaign expense – information on the election/referendum campaign expense, all goods and services received free of charge, donation source, amount and date of the receipt of donation;
z11) electoral donations – funds deposited by natural and legal persons to the account of the respective electoral subject during the election/referendum campaign, as well as all types of material value and services obtained free of charge, except for free air time cost as determined by this Law;
z12) electoral documents – an application, complaint, letter, protocol, ballot paper, special envelope, a legislative act of the Electoral Administration of Georgia, a check-list, registration book, list of voters, voter invitation card, or a statement of a member of an election commission incoming and outgoing at an election commission;
z13) biometric registration – taking a biometric photo and recording personal data (questionnaire survey) as determined by this Law, as well as holding a Georgian citizen’s electronic identity card or a Georgian citizen’s biometric passport, except when that document is issued after biometric registration under this Law;
z14) campaign material – a poster, flag or any other material on which an electoral subject/candidate for electoral subject and/or his/her sequence number is displayed.


z15) Agency – the Legal Entity under Public Law (LEPL) – the Public Service Development Agency within the Ministry of Justice of Georgia;
z16) Beneficiary of support – persons defined under Article 12(4-5) of the Civil Code of Georgia;
z17) polling station – a building or a part of a building where a polling room of a PEC is located;
z18) photocopy – a copy made by means of a photocopier;
z19) Election Panel – a special body consisting of 300 members approved under an ordinance of the CEC, in order to elect President of Georgia. 


Organic Law of Georgia No 878 of 27 July 2013 – website, 7.8.2013
Organic Law of Georgia No 864 of 25 July 2013 – website, 19.8.2013
Organic Law of Georgia No 2093 of 7 March 2014 – website, 14.3.2014
Organic Law of Georgia No 3402 of 20 March 2015 – website, 31.3.2015
Organic Law of Georgia No 5438 of 22 June 2016 – website, 12.7.2016
Organic Law of Georgia No 1232 of 26 July 2017 – website, 29.7.2017
Organic Law of Georgia No 1274 of 26 July 2017 – website, 29.7.2017
Organic Law of Georgia No 3269 of 21 July 2018 – website, 27.7.2018
Organic Law of Georgia No 3266 of 21 July 2018 – website, 13.8.2018