On the day of municipal elections, Georgian riot police used pepper spray and water cannon to disperse opposition protesters near the presidential palace during a major demonstration.

The governing Georgian Dream (GD) party said it had clinched victory in every municipality across the South Caucasus country of 3.7 million in an election boycotted by the two largest opposition blocs.

Shortly before polls closed on Saturday, a group of demonstrators attempted to force entry to the presidential palace in the capital Tbilisi , a Reuters witness said, after opposition figures called for a “peaceful revolution” against GD, which they accuse of being pro-Russian and authoritarian.

Protests Under Way Since Last October

Georgia’s pro-Western opposition has been staging protests since Octobe

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