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The leading candidates in Georgia's October 27 presidential election are (from left) Giorgi Margvelashvili ("Georgian Dream"), Davit Bakradze (United National Movement), and former parliament speaker Nino Burjanadze.
The leading candidates in Georgia's October 27 presidential election are (from left) Giorgi Margvelashvili ("Georgian Dream"), Davit Bakradze (United National Movement), and former parliament speaker Nino Burjanadze.

Liveblog: Georgia Votes For President

RFE/RL's coverage of the Georgian presidential vote as it happened.

Overview

-- Exit poll results show Giorgi Margvelashvili winning outright victory. He is projected to win 67 to 68 percent of the vote, with the closest runner up, Davit Bakradze earning 17-20 percent. Bakradze has conceded defeat.

-- Turnout was 46.6 percent -- a steep drop, compared to parliamentary elections last year, when 60.8 percent of eligible voters turned out to vote. There were some 3.5 million eligible voters.

-- There were 23 candidates standing in today's poll, but most attention focused on three candidates: Giorgi Margvelashvili, representing the Georgian Dream coalition and handpicked by Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili; Davit Bakradze, a member of President Mikhail Saakashvili's United National Movement (UNM); and Nino Burjanadze, the leader of the Democratic Movement-United Georgia party.

-- Consitutional reforms, which concentrate most power in the hands of the prime minister, will take effect following today's vote. Ivanishvili has said he will retire by the end of this year, but has not said whom he will appoint as his successor.

-- Glenn Kates

10:50 27.10.2013
Our Georgian Service has correspondents around the country reporting from polling stations. They have also seen some instances of complaints being filed over an insufficient number of ballots. (Liveblog in Georgian)
10:43 27.10.2013
Not much drama to report so far -- with the exception of this (an observer for Transparency International).

10:19 27.10.2013
10:17 27.10.2013
Transparency International, which is monitoring elections, says in a release that while the the election has been "generally quiet," the number of procedural violations observed has increased over last year. The group, which has 370 local observers, reports that a number of precincts do not have enough ballots.
10:03 27.10.2013
As of noon in Georgia, voter turnout was at 17.5 percent, according to the Central Election Commission. At the same time during parliamentary elections last year, turnout stood at nearly 26 percent. With a weakened presidency and Margvelashvili widely expected to win, voter interest was expected to decrease this year.

09:56 27.10.2013
07:57 27.10.2013
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