Franks invited to monitor Georgia republic election

Rebel insurgencies and fraudulent elections have plagued the republic of Georgia since it became an independent state in April 1991.
Part of two ancient kingdoms, the region of Georgia was annexed by Russia in 1801 and forcibly incorporated in 1922 into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (the USSR disbanded in December 1991).
With a new national election scheduled Jan. 5, the International Expert Center for Electoral Systems (ICES) invited several individuals to monitor the process and help ensure free and open balloting.
Among them was Marengo attorney Herbert H. Franks, a past president of the Illinois State Bar Association and former special assistant Illinois attorney general. His participation was to be centered in the capital city of Tiblisi.
“Free and open elections are the cornerstone of democracy,” Franks said, noting that until a few years ago, Georgia ranked as one of the most politically corrupt nations in the world.
“In 2004, Georgia took a great leap forward in the struggle to bring democracy back to the former Soviet block,” he added. That was the year when Mikhail Saakashvili was elected president in the special balloting that followed the resignation of Eduard Shevardnadze.
Elected in 1994 and re-elected in 1995 and 2000, Shevardnadze stepped down after parliamentary elections in 2003 were denounced by international observers as fraudulent and ruled void by the supreme court. Saakashvili, now age 40, is a candidate for re-election.
“We have an obligation to ensure that the 2008 Georgian national election is a similar expression of the free choice of the Georgian people,” Franks said.

Back to Table of Contents