Pro-governmental MP candidate secures victory in struggle for last seat in Abkhazian Parliament
Leonid Chamagua
The Abkhazian Parliament has finally been staffed and is now expected to elect a new speaker.
The decision has eventually been made on the last 35th MP mandate for Gudauta constituency # 17, where a by-election was held after the results of the 12 March 2017 elections had been summed up.
Leonid Chamagua, one of the most popular Abkhazian politicians, has been elected an MP from this constituency. His only rival was Leonid Lakerbaia, an individual opposition leader and ex-Premier, who headed the Cabinet under the former president, Alexander Ankvab.
Initially, the election in Gudauta constituency #17 was declared void, as none of the 2 MP candidates managed to gain more than half of the electorate’s votes.
Last time, Leonid Lakerbaia fell short by just 12 votes in order to be elected to parliament, whereas this time he lost by a bigger margin: according to the Central Election Commission’s official data, announced on 15 May 2017, Leonid Chamagua gained 1,389 votes, Leonid Lakerbaia – 1,169.
Whatever the outcome of the Gudauta constituency by-election, it couldn’t influence the new parliament’s configuration – the President’s loyal MPs already make two-thirds of the current composition of the People’s Assembly (Abkhazian Parliament). Nevertheless, the public showed a tremendous interest in voting in this constituency.
If Lakerbaia had won the election, the parliamentary opposition would have got a qualitative upturn.
The authorities that supported Leonid Chamagua initially had lofty plans for him: according to sources in the President’s Administration, Chamagua was viewed as a possible new parliament speaker.
It is assumed that the incumbent Parliament Speaker, Valery Kvarchia, 72, who was elected to his post a month ago, will voluntarily resign and Leonid Chamagua will be elected in his stead.
