Free and fair elections and electoral processes are absolutely essential for any democratic country, said the EU Ambassador to Georgia, while answering on the question of staffing the Central Election Commission.

“This is another issue where we need to continue the conversation between the European Commission and Georgia. Free, fair elections and electoral processes are absolutely essential for any democratic country. This is why a free and fair electoral process is one of the 9 steps.

In regard to the electoral reforms, the Venice Commission [VC] is the international standards-setter. We have repeatedly asked the Georgian parliament to consult the VC with all planned reforms when it comes to elections. The VC was very clear in its recommendations. The law that was signed today contains many of the recommendations of the VC but unfortunately, some of the recommendations have not been taken into account”, - said Paweł Herczyński.