Saakashvili peacefully handed over power to "billionaire oligarch"

Following the invasion of the Capitol by Donald Trump supporters, a joint session of Congress resumed where the votes of the Electoral College were to be counted in order to form Joe Biden's presidency.

Speaking at the session, Democrat Senator Jeanne Shahin also spoke about Georgia, noting that in 2012, then-Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili handed over power to the "billionaire oligarch" peacefully. This text of the senator's speech is spread by the "Voice of America".

Like many of those in this building, I have traveled to emerging democracies around the world, from Afghanistan and Iraq to the Western Balkans and Africa, and to the country of Georgia. In 2012, I arrived in Georgia with my colleague Senator Risch to officially observe the elections under the auspices of the Senate. "The election between Mikheil Saakashvili's United National Movement and the rival Georgian Dream, a party backed and founded by billionaire oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, was a struggle to gain control not only of the parliament but also of the government," said Jeanne Shaheen.

According to Senator Shaheen, the 2012 elections were held in accordance with democratic principles

"Senator Risch and I went directly to several polling stations on election day and agreed with international observers that it was a free and fair election and a Georgian dream was winning the election. But there was real concern in the country that Saakashvili was not planning to relinquish power. It could have been the cause of the violence. It would have ended the young, nascent democratic reforms that were taking place in this former Soviet republic," said Shaheen.

The Senator recalled the meeting she and Jim Risch had on the second day of the elections with the third President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili.

"On the second day of the election, we met with President Saakashvili. I remember clearly, we went to his house, sat down and talked about the fact that the main sign of democracy, for which he worked hard during his eight years in office, would be a peaceful transfer of power to those who the voters elected. He listened to us and he transferred the power peacefully. It is important for the next generation to realize that America, like democracies everywhere, is based on the peaceful transfer of power," said Shaheen.

One woman was wounded and killed when Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building, while three other people were killed during a riot in the surrounding area. At least 14 police officers were injured, some of whom were taken to hospital.