Georgians vote in presidential election

Georgians began casting ballots today to determine whether their country will continue to be led by Mikhail Saakashvili, the brash young president who four years ago set out to transform the bankrupt former Soviet republic into a modern European state.

Saakashvili became a symbol of democratic reform after leading mass street protests that ousted a Communist-era veteran from power following fraudulent elections in late 2003.

Now, the US-educated hero of the Rose Revolution is fighting not only to remain in office but to prove to his critics that he is still the democratic leader once so beloved in his homeland and admired in the West.

His opponents accuse him of ignoring the needs of the poor and showing a tendency toward authoritarianism. They took to the streets in November, holding peaceful demonstrations for five days before police violently dispersed them and Saakashvili imposed a state of emergency that included banning independent TV news broadcasts.

The violent crackdown angered many Georgians and called into question Saakashvili’s commitment to democracy.

Saakashvili defused the crisis by calling an early election, cutting short his own five-year term.

Saakashvili won a January 2004 election with more than 96% of the vote. His challenge today is to win an outright majority and avoid a runoff two weeks later that would allow the opposition, now split among six challengers, to unite behind a single candidate.

He faces his toughest competition from Levan Gachechiladze, a member of parliament who built a business producing wine.

Gachechiladze, 43, represents an opposition coalition that wants to do away with the presidency. If a parliamentary system is established, as the coalition wants, he would step down.

He is running in tandem with Salome Zurabishvili, a former French diplomat who once served as Saakashvili’s foreign minister. She would become his prime minister and then leader of the country if the presidency were abolished.