Introduction of electronic voting technologies in the October 26, 2024 Elections, scheduled and implemented activities of the Election Administration (EA) of Georgia in this area and advantages of electronic elections – the workshop has been held in regard to these topics as well as other crucial issues for representatives of media.

The meeting has been commenced with the opening remarks by Chairperson of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia, Giorgi Kalandarishvili, Director of the CEC Training Centre, Natia Zaalishvili, and Deputy Country Director for Georgia of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), Davit Ghonghadze.

Giorgi Kalandarishvili personally provided the media representatives with information regarding introduction of electronic voting technologies in Georgia. He thoroughly spoke about the significant importance of modernizing elections as well as using and introducing electronic technologies in the electoral processes.

During two days, the meeting participants gained useful insights from the IFES representatives regarding crucial topics such as results of international audit on electronic voting devices, the EA’s Communication Strategy and the information campaign for the October 26, 2024 Parliamentary Elections, international standards for broadcasting elections, role of media and legal situation in the voting process as well as international practice for educating voters about electoral processes. Furthermore, a discussion took place, where the journalists gained thorough answers on all questions of their interest.

During the workshop, representatives of media experienced how the electronic voting technologies, namely the verification and vote counting electronic devices, function in practice, and participated in the mock elections as well.

The outdoor workshop for media representatives commenced on September 18 and ended on September 20. It was organized by the CEC of Georgia, with the financial support of the CEC Training Centre and the IFES, and had an attendance of the 24 representatives from media.