Voter Turnout In Abkhazia's Presidential Election Exceeds 56 Percent - Election Commission

SUKHUM (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th August, 2019) The Abkhaz presidential election's voter turnout has exceeded 50 percent, which makes its results valid, Tamaz Gogia, the chairman of the republic's central election commission, told reporters on Sunday.

This is the republic's fourth presidential election since it proclaimed its independence from Georgia in 2008. There are nine candidates running for the office, including current President Raul Khadzhimba, Astamur Tarba, the former head of the republic's Security Service, and defense minister's adviser Oleg Arshba.

"The elections of the Abkhaz president are recognized as valid .

.. According to the received data, the voter turnout threshold is obviously surpassed, exceeding 56 percent," Gogia said.

While being a part of Georgia, Abkhazia suffered from ethnic tensions between Abkhaz and Georgian populations, resulting in the 1992-1993 war. The conflict ended with Abkhazia being a de facto independent country. In August 2008, Abkhazia and Russia fend off an attack by the Georgian military leading to the official founding of self-governing Abkhaz nation. It still remains unrecognized by the majority of world's nations, with the exception of Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria.