22/7 Tass 295
SUKHUMI, July 22 (Itar-Tass) —— The United Abkhazia Party’s Political Council has supported the nomination of Alexander Ankvab for president and Mikhail Logua for vice-president.
Ankvab had been the Abkhaz premier since February 2005, and then President Sergei Bagapsh supported his nomination for vice-president in 2009, party chairman Daur Tarba said.
“Activists of United Abkhazia know Alexander Ankvab as a principled and businesslike statesman and politician, who does his best to strengthen the Abkhaz statehood,” he said.
Abkhazia will have an early presidential election on August 26 because of Bagapsh’s death. The other two presidential candidates are Prime Minister Sergei Shamba and opposition leader Raul Khadzhimba.
A group of citizens nominated Shamba for president. Deputy head of the State Committee and Sports Shamil Adzinba will be a candidate for vice-president.
Representatives of the Russian Public Chamber will monitor the presidential election in Abkhazia, Public Chamber member, Director of the Moscow Human Rights Bureau Alexander Brod told Shamba on July 19.
“An open and democratic election will indicate the republic’s health and development. We, in Russia, are closely watching your republic and wish its development and support to local businessmen,” he said.
“The work of the League for Fair Election, which was established in 2004 and intensified its activity lately, will be useful,” Brod said.
“Any election, especially the presidential one, is an indicator of the level of democracy,” Shamba said. “We are constantly improving. There are serious improvement prerequisites in the election process in Abkhazia.”
“In the opinion of observers, we held the latest election in 2009 at a good level. It was said that the election was open, transparent, accessible and democratic,” Shamba said.