Abkhazia Weekly Brief | Week 7 | Election Edition
Inside Abkhazia’s presidential elections: results, reactions, and what’s next.
This week was all about one thing—Presidential elections. With polling stations opening across the republic and abroad, voter turnout reaching 65%, and tensions running high, the race has been nothing short of eventful. From international observers assessing the process to reports of deportations and controversies, this election has drawn significant attention both inside and outside Abkhazia.
As the first round wraps up and preliminary results indicate a likely second round, we take a closer look at the key moments of the week, who voted, what happened at the polling stations, and what comes next for the candidates and the country.
Welcome to Abkhazia Weekly Brief, Elections edition.
THE RESULTS
Chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Abkhazia, Dmitry Marshan, has officially confirmed that a second round of the presidential elections will take place.
According to Marshan, Adgur Ardzinba and Badra Gunba have advanced to the runoff, as no candidate secured the required majority in the first round.
The second round is scheduled to take place by 1 March.
Preliminary results
According to preliminary results of the 15 February 2025 presidential elections, with a voter turnout of 69.13%, a total of 91,386 ballots were cast. The vote distribution among the candidates is as follows:
Badra Gunba – 44,270 votes (46.41%)
Adgur Ardzinba – 35,210 votes (36.91%)
Robert Arshba – 7,169 votes (7.52%)
Oleg Bartsits – 3,879 votes (4.07%)
Adgur Khurkhumal – 858 votes (0.90%)
Additionally, 1,313 ballots were cast against all candidates, while 2,684 ballots were deemed invalid.
Under Abkhazia’s electoral law, a candidate can only win the second round if they receive more votes than both their opponent and the combined total of votes cast for the "Against All Candidates" option.
BEFORE THE ELECTIONS
On Friday, 14 February, Abkhazia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) opened its press centre in Sukhum. CEC Chairman Dmitry Marshan provided updates on preparations for the 15 February presidential elections and addressed journalists’ questions.
Marshan confirmed the closure of the polling station in Türkiye but did not elaborate on the reasons.
AbhazFed reported that Turkish authorities blocked the vote without providing legal justification.
See: Abkhazian Diaspora in Türkiye Faces Blocked Elections and Intimidation
According to Marshan, 100 international observers from 25 countries have arrived to monitor the election. Representatives include: Russia – Sergey Baburin, former State Duma deputy, France – Arnaud Olivier Jean Develey, international law expert, Italy – Sara Cunial, former MP and chair of Vita, Colombia – David Alejandro Toro Ramirez, Congress member. Observers also hail from Austria, Germany, Spain, Greece, South Korea, South Ossetia, and Transnistria.
Voting in Abkhazia’s early presidential elections has been conducted, with polling stations across the republic having opened at 8:00 AM on Saturday. The voting process continued until 8:00 PM, after which ballot counting commenced.
The Chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC), Dmitry Marshan, confirmed that all 152 polling stations across Abkhazia had opened on time. Additionally, two polling stations in Russia, located in Moscow and Cherkessk (Karachay-Cherkessia), had also begun operations as scheduled.
Abkhaz citizens arriving in Russia for Abkhazia’s elections were denied entry and deported, raising concerns over political interference. Ümit Ashba, from Türkiye, barred until 2034, called it politically motivated. Musician Baras Kudzba was also deported. Critics accuse Moscow of backing pro-government candidate Badra Gunba.
See: Abkhaz Citizens Denied Entry to Russia, Deported Amid Presidential Elections
Repatriation Committee Chairman Vadim Kharaziya voiced concern over Russia’s deportation of Ümit Ashba, an Abkhaz citizen who arrived from Türkiye to vote. He urged Russian authorities to clarify the decision.
Roin Agrba, Journalist and War Veteran: “Abkhaz citizens who were traveling to Abkhazia to vote after the closure of the polling station in Türkiye are now being arrested and deported. The arrests and deportations are taking place at Adler Airport, with individuals being issued 10-year deportation orders and sent back to Türkiye.
Is this yet another forced exile?”
Roin Agrba — “Aren’t you ashamed? What exactly are you trying to achieve? To break us? To humiliate us? To turn us into sheep? And yet, you speak of opportunities for young, talented people? What do you really want from the youth? Obedience and submission?For once, speak up and justify yourselves! Say something today! Your silence will be seen as betrayal!
I am addressing the supporters of Badra Gunba—with what conscience will you congratulate your candidate if he wins? A victory over our future?
Yesterday, you defeated the diaspora—and today…?”
***
Rada Argun, Journalist: “The era of informers, traitors, and turncoats will also come to an end. Baras, they should be the ones to sacrifice themselves for you!!! 150 years ago, your ancestors endured the same fate. But today, you stand alongside them, in the land of your soul—your homeland—forever!”
ELECTRAL VIOLATIONS
Serious electoral violations were reported at the polling station in Cherkessk (Karachay-Cherkessia) during Abkhazia's presidential elections. A local man had cast a vote using someone else’s passport, confirmed by the election commission’s stamp in an Abkhaz passport. Outside, he admitted that an unidentified person had handed him the document for voting.
Another video showed a young man handing over a stack of Abkhaz passports to an unknown individual. It remained unclear who had used these passports, but they were not legitimate Abkhazian citizens.
Throughout the day, the central campaign headquarters of presidential candidate Adgur Ardzinba and vice-presidential candidate Alkhas Dzhindzhal had submitted eight complaints to the CEC regarding violations at polling stations.
Vice-presidential candidate Alkhas Dzhindzhal and his wife Viktoria Marshan have cast their votes in the election.
Acting Minister of Internal Affairs, Robert Kiut, stated during a briefing at the International Press Centre of the Central Election Commission (CEC) that no violations had been recorded during Abkhazia’s presidential elections. Kiut provided an overview of the election process, emphasising that voting had proceeded without any reported irregularities.
Acting Prosecutor General Damir Kvitsiniya also stated that no complaints or reports of violations at polling stations had been filed with the prosecutor's office. He outlined key oversight duties, including reviewing complaints and forwarding cases with criminal elements to investigators.
ELECTION OBSERVERS
Italian observer Vito Grittani praised Abkhazia’s presidential elections as open and democratic, highlighting transparency and efficiency. He and his colleagues visited eight polling stations and found no major violations. Observer Grazia Rosa Villani noted high voter turnout and was surprised by the “Against All” option. Monitoring continues as voting progresses.
“The turnout is quite high, which indicates that people are truly engaged in deciding their future. We were also surprised to see a 'None of the Above' option on the ballot, something that does not exist in Italy.”
AND THE PARROT EU 🦜🦜🦜
As always, the European Union, which manages to bungle everything it touches and whose policies seem to consist solely of repeating past mistakes, responded to the elections in Abkhazia with its usual copy-paste approach, issuing yet another hollow statement. Brussels reaffirmed its commitment to Georgia’s policy of non-recognition regarding Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which Tbilisi insists are '“occupied territories”. Meanwhile, the foreign ministries of Sweden, Latvia, and Ukraine announced that they do not recognise the legitimacy or results of Abkhazia’s early presidential elections.
A Reminder. This is where the EU’s rhetoric about respecting internationally recognised borders falls apart—one of the clearest examples of its hypocrisy and amateurism.
Kaja Kallas, Vice president of the EU: “Russia's defeat is not a bad thing, then we can break it up into smaller nations.” Click here to watch the video.
Stalin’s (Dzhugashvili) Soviet Georgian borders are long gone. But if the West prefers, they can keep denying reality—parroting the same lines year after year and treating Stalin’s borders like some sacred relic. Or, they could acknowledge the facts and act accordingly. Their call…
By the way, Andrei Sakharov—the very man in whose name the EU hands out an award each year—once called Georgia a “mini empire.”
And as Kallas put it, “…break it up, it’s not a bad thing.” So, what do you think? Bad? Or just fine?
Yes indeed 🙂 Make America Abkhazia Great Again
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