Supreme Soviet elections were held in

Abkhazia Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a List of states with limited recognition, partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia. It cover ...

on 29 September 1991, with a second round on 14 October. A third round was held in twelve constituencies where voter turnout had been below the 50% threshold on 1 December.

Electoral system

The 65 seats in the

Supreme Soviet The Supreme Soviet () was the common name for the legislative bodies (parliaments) of the Soviet socialist republics (SSR) in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). These soviets were modeled after the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, establ ...

were allocated to different ethnic groups; 28 were reserved for

Abkhazians The Abkhazians or Abkhazes are a Northwest Caucasian languages, Northwest Caucasian ethnic group, mainly living in Abkhazia, a disputed region on the northeastern coast of the Black Sea. A large Abkhaz diaspora population resides in Turkey, th ...

, 26 for

Georgians Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and Peoples of the Caucasus, Caucasian ethnic group native to present-day Georgia (country), Georgia and surrounding areas historically associated with the Ge ...

and 11 for the other ethnic groups.Bruno Coppieters (1996
Contested Borders in the Caucasus
VUB Press

Aftermath

The Supreme Soviet was only able to approve legislation in some areas of policy with a 75% majority. On 24 June 1992 the chairman of Abkhazian Supreme Soviet

Vladislav Ardzinba Vladislav Ardzinba (, ka, ვლადისლავ არძინბა; 14 May 1945 – 4 March 2010) was an Abkhaz historian and politician who served as the first '' de facto'' president of Abkhazia. Ardzinba led Abkhazia to '' de fact ...

ordered the republican guard to attack the building of Abkhazian Ministry of Internal Affairs and remove ethnic Georgian minister Givi Lominadze from office, which led to Lominadze's hospitalization. Lominadze was replaced by

Alexander Ankvab Aleksandr Zolotinskovich Ankvab ( ; ; ka, ალექსანდრე ზოლოტინსკის ძე ანქვაბი, tr; ; born 26 December 1952) is an Abkhaz politician and businessman who was the president of Abkhazia fro ...

, a member of Abkhaz ethno-nationalist movement Aidgylara. After this, on 30 June, Georgian deputies of the Supreme Soviet organized a walk-out and began boycotting the Soviet.Potter, p11

References

{{Abkhazian elections

parliamentary In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

Parliamentary elections in Abkhazia