2011 Abkhazian presidential election
{{Short description|none}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2014}}
{{Infobox election
| election_name = 2011 Abkhazian presidential election
| country = Abkhazia
| type = presidential
| previous_election = 2009 Abkhazian presidential election
| previous_year = 2009
| next_election = 2014 Abkhazian presidential election
| next_year = 2014
| election_date = 26 August 2011
| image_size = 130x130px
| candidate1=Alexander Ankvab
| image1 = Alexander Ankvab - 06.10.2011.jpg
| party1 = Aitaira
| running_mate1 = Mikhail Logua
| popular_vote1 = 58,657
| percentage1 = 56.23%
| candidate2=Sergei Shamba
| colour2 = 054101
| image2 = 3x4.svg
| party2 = PEDA
| running_mate2 = Shamil Adzynba
| popular_vote2 = 22,456
| percentage2 = 21.53%
| candidate3=Raul Khajimba
| image3 = Raul Khajimba 2015.jpg
| party3 = Forum for the National Unity of Abkhazia
| running_mate3 = {{ill|Svetlana Jergenia|ru|Джергения, Светлана Ирадионовна}}
| popular_vote3 = 21,177
| percentage3 = 20.30%
| title= President
| before_election= Alexander Ankvab (acting)
| before_party= Aitaira
| after_election= Alexander Ankvab
| after_party = Aitaira
}}{{Politics of Abkhazia}}
Presidential elections were held in Abkhazia on 26 August 2011. This was the fifth such election since the post of President of the Republic of Abkhazia was created in 1994. The election was held to elect the successor of president Sergei Bagapsh who died in office on 29 May 2011.
Background
The election was originally scheduled to take place in 2014, five years after the previous election; however, the Constitution of Abkhazia required an election to be held within three months after the unexpected death of incumbent president Sergei Bagapsh on 29 May. On 8 June the People's Assembly set the election date for 26 August.{{cite news|title=Abkhaz Early Elections Set for August 26|url=http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=23592|accessdate=8 June 2011|newspaper=Civil Georgia|date=8 June 2011}} The MPs decided against earlier dates such as 20 August, which is immediately after the summer holidays, as the election is largely organised by teachers and to allow for repairs to school buildings to be completed, where many polling stations are located.{{cite news|last=Galustyan|first=Levon|title=Выборы состоятся 26 августа|url=http://www.ekhokavkaza.com/content/article/24229002.html|accessdate=2 July 2011|newspaper=Echo of the Caucasus|date=8 June 2011}}
=Requirements and registration procedure=
According to the Law on the Election of the President of the Republic of Abkhazia, candidates for the Presidency have to:
- possess Abkhazian citizenship;
- be of Abkhaz ethnicity;
- be fluent in the Abkhaz language;
- be no younger than 35 and no older than 65 years of age;
- be eligible to vote;
- have permanently lived in Abkhazia for the last five years up to the election day.{{cite news|last=Kuchuberia|first=Anzhela|title=Кандидаты на пост главы Абхазии будут сдавать экзамен по абхазскому языку|url=http://abkhasia.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/188095/|accessdate=2 July 2011|newspaper=Caucasian Knot|date=29 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007145324/http://abkhasia.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/188095/|archive-date=7 October 2011|url-status=dead}}
Prospective candidates have to be nominated between 27 June and 17 July. This can be done either by an initiative group of at least 10 people with a list of between 2000 and 2500 signatures, or by a political party registered with the Central Election Commission.{{cite news|title=С 27 июня начинается выдвижение кандидатов в президенты Республики Абхазия |url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3541.html |accessdate=2 July 2011 |newspaper=Apsnypress |date=27 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405163524/http://apsnypress.info/news/3541.html |archivedate=5 April 2012 }} The only parties registered in this way are United Abkhazia, the Forum of the National Unity of Abkhazia, the Party of the Economic Development of Abkhazia, the People's Party and the Communist Party. After the nomination period ends, the Central Election Commission will verify the signature lists and whether candidates satisfy the set requirements. To test the nominees' proficiency in Abkhaz, it has established a language commission.{{cite news|title=Батал Табагуа проинформировал депутатов о подготовке Центризбиркома к президентским выборам |url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3550.html |accessdate=2 July 2011 |newspaper=Apsnypress |date=28 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405163635/http://apsnypress.info/news/3550.html |archivedate=5 April 2012 }} Registration of the candidates has to be completed before 27 July and two days after their registration the Central Election Commission has to make public the list of nominees whose candidacy had been approved.{{cite news|title=Центризбирком утвердил календарный план мероприятий по подготовке к досрочным выборам президента |url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3453.html |accessdate=2 July 2011 |newspaper=Apsnypress |date=10 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110625202337/http://apsnypress.info/news/3453.html |archivedate=25 June 2011 }}
Candidates
All three candidates who were nominated for the election successfully completed their registration: Acting President Alexander Ankvab, Prime Minister Sergei Shamba and opposition leader Raul Khajimba. Following their nomination, Shamba and his vice presidential candidate, Shamil Adzynba, as well as Khajimba and his running mate Svetlana Jergenia applied for registration on 16 July.{{cite news|title=Сергей Шамба и Шамиль Адзынба подали заявление в Центральную избирательную комиссию о согласии баллотироваться на пост президента и вице-президента Республики Абхазия.|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3690.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=16 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719083109/http://apsnypress.info/news/3690.html|archive-date=19 July 2011|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}{{cite news|title=Рауль Хаджимба и Светлана Джергения дали согласие баллотироваться на пост президента и вице-президента Абхазии|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3691.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=16 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719083114/http://apsnypress.info/news/3691.html|archive-date=19 July 2011|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} Ankvab and his vice presidential candidate Mikhail Logua filed their application on 17 July.{{cite news|title=Александр Анкваб и Михаил Логуа дали согласие баллотироваться на пост президента и вице-президента Республики Абхазия|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3692.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=17 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719083431/http://apsnypress.info/news/3692.html|archive-date=19 July 2011|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} The three presidential candidates passed their Abkhaz language test on 20 July 2011.{{cite news|title=Александр Анкваб, Рауль Хаджимба и Сергей Шамба сдали экзамен на знание Государственного абхазского языка|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3724.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=20 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405164039/http://apsnypress.info/news/3724.html|archive-date=5 April 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} All candidates were registered by the CEC on 25 July{{cite news|title=Центральная избирательная комиссия зарегистрировала кандидатами в президенты Александра Анкваба, Рауля Хаджимба и Сергея Шамба|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3754.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=25 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405164954/http://apsnypress.info/news/3754.html|archive-date=5 April 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} and received their certificates on 26 July.
Campaign
The election campaign official began when the candidates received their registration certificates on 26 July. According to election law, Alexander Ankvab and Sergei Shamba had to take leave from their offices.{{cite news|title=Кандидаты в президенты Республики Абхазия должны уйти в отпуск |url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3756.html |accessdate=31 July 2011 |newspaper=Apsnypress |date=25 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405164349/http://apsnypress.info/news/3756.html |archivedate=5 April 2012 }} Correspondingly, Parliament Speaker Nugzar Ashuba temporarily took over as Acting President and Vice-Premier Beslan Kubrava as Prime Minister.
On 19 July, the League of Voters "For Fair Elections" held its first press conference to announce that it would monitor the upcoming election as in previous years.{{cite news|title=Лига избирателей "За честные выборы" будет наблюдать за ходом голосования на выборах президента Абхазии 26 августа|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3713.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=19 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405164418/http://apsnypress.info/news/3713.html|archive-date=5 April 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}
Shamba's campaign was led by Beslan Eshba.{{cite news|last1=Sharia|first1=Vitali|title="Родина" и "Народный фронт" по-абхазски|url=http://www.ekhokavkaza.org/content/article/27195737.html|accessdate=19 October 2015|agency=Echo of the Caucasus|date=18 August 2015}}
=Media use=
==TV broadcasts==
Each presidential candidate received three hours of free air time on national state television in the four weeks running up to election day, and each Vice Presential candidate one hour. During the first week, candidates had the choice between an hour of live interaction with voters and sending in a pre-recorded DVD. In the second week, the candidates, alone or assisted by no more than four associates, received one hour of live interaction with voters. In the third and fourth weeks, first the vice-presidential candidate and then the presidential candidates had the opportunity to answer alternatingly questions from voters and from officially registered media.
Apart from these broadcasts, each candidate could send in commercials up to five minutes, which were broadcast on weekdays between 1 and 25 August, three times daily (8:00, 18:00 and 20:00).
The order in which the broadcasts of candidates appeared was determined by draw, and was as follows:{{cite news|title=Центризбирком жеребьевкой определил очередность выступления кандидатов в президенты и вице-президенты в эфире Абхазской Гостелерадиокомпании |url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3768.html |accessdate=31 July 2011 |newspaper=Apsnypress |date=26 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405164843/http://apsnypress.info/news/3768.html |archivedate=5 April 2012 }}
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right;" |
| style="width: 200px;"|
|style="width: 100px;"|Monday |style="width: 100px;"|Tuesday |style="width: 100px;"|Wednesday |style="width: 100px;"|Thursday |style="width: 100px;"|Friday |style="width: 200px;"|Order of commercials |
| style="text-align:left" |Week 1 (1–5 August)
|Khajimba | |Shamba | |Ankvab |Khajimba – Ankvab – Shamba |
| style="text-align:left" |Week 2 (8–12 August)
|Khajimba | |Shamba | |Ankvab |Khajimba – Shamba – Ankvab |
| style="text-align:left" |Week 3 (15–19 August)
|Logua | |Jergenia | |Adzynba |Ankvab – Khajimba – Shamba |
| style="text-align:left" |Week 4 (22–26 August)
|Shamba |Khajimba |Ankvab | | |Ankvab – Shamba – Khajimba |
Opinion polls
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Date
! class=unsortable|Source ! style="background-color:#F7230C; width: 50px;" | Sergei Shamba ! style="background-color:#FFF300; width: 50px;" | Alexander Ankvab ! style="background-color:#4FFF33; width: 50px;" | Raul Khajimba |
|---|
| 5–12 July 2011
! class=unsortable|Dobrososedstvo | align="center" | 30.1% | align="center" | 26.1% | align="center" | 8.0% |
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20120424225952/http://www.kavkaz-news.info/portal/cnid_181385/alias__Caucasus-Info/lang__en/tabid__2434/default.aspx Opinion polling]
Results
The CEC decided that in order to reduce costs and simplify the organisation of the election, there would be no separate polling stations and precinct election commissions for military units. Instead, it sent a letter to the Ministry of Defence requesting that soldiers should receive leave ten days before the election, allowing them to collect absentee ballots and thus vote in a polling station of their choosing.{{cite news|title=В войсковых частях министерства обороны РА не будет участковых избирательных комиссий|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/3757.html|accessdate=31 July 2011|newspaper=Apsnypress|date=25 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405164629/http://apsnypress.info/news/3757.html|archive-date=5 April 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}
According to the Abkhazian electoral commission, preliminary results showed a first round victory for Ankvab over Shamba and Khajimba.{{cite news|title=Александр Анкваб набрал 54,86% голосов избирателей |url=http://apsnypress.info/news/4103.html |accessdate=27 August 2011 |newspaper=Apsnypress |date=27 August 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405165953/http://apsnypress.info/news/4103.html |archivedate=5 April 2012 }}
The official results, released on 27 August, showed only small differences, and Alexander Ankvab was elected in the first round.{{cite news|url=http://www.mfaabkhazia.net/en/node/1054|title=Final results of the presidential elections in Abkhazia|date=27 August 2011|publisher=Abkhazian Ministry of Foreign Affairs|accessdate=4 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330124215/http://www.mfaabkhazia.net/en/node/1054|archive-date=30 March 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} He is to be sworn in on 26 September.{{cite news|url=http://apsnypress.info/news/4149.html|title=26 сентября состоится инаугурация вновь избранного президента Республики Абхазия|date=2 September 2011|publisher=Apsnypress|language=Russian|accessdate=4 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405170045/http://apsnypress.info/news/4149.html|archive-date=5 April 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}
{{Election results
|cand1=Alexander Ankvab|party1=Aitaira|votes1=58657
|cand2=Sergei Shamba|party2=Party for the Economic Development of Abkhazia|votes2=22456
|cand3=Raul Khajimba|party3=Forum for the National Unity of Abkhazia|votes3=21177
|row4=Against all|votes4=2023
|invalid=2532
|electorate=148556
|source=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120330124215/http://www.mfaabkhazia.net/en/node/1054 Ministry of Foreign Affairs]
}}