Fabricated Opinion Polls Under the Name of Edison Research Are Disseminated on Facebook

Verdict: FAKE NEWS

The Dzala Simartleshia (Power is in Truth) Facebook page published a photograph (see below) with the following caption: Edison’s Polls for 16:00.

In fact, Edison Research has not published election polls for 16:00. According to the information of Formula TV which commissioned Edison Research polls, interviewers will complete an evening survey and exit-poll results will be aired on Formula TV at 20:00 sharp.

According to the Section 5 of Article 50 of the Election Code of Georgia: “It is prohibited to publish public opinion poll results in regard to elections, except for the possible number of voters in elections and the number of voters participating in elections on the polling day, within 48 hours before the polling day and until 20:00 of that same day.”

Of note is that the Dzala Simartleshia Facebook page in the last years, including in the run-up of the 2020 parliamentary elections, was mostly preoccupied with discrediting the opposition and the NGO sector.

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