Voters in rebel Abkhazia went to the polls Friday to elect a third leader in the tumultuous period since it broke from Georgia in the 1990s, a move recognised only by Moscow and a few states. The snap elections follow the death of veteran president Sergei Bagapsh after lung surgery earlier this year and will be viewed as illegitimate by most of the world.
Three contenders are competing for the top post in the rebel region which, besides Russia, has only been recognised by Venezuela, Nicaragua and the tiny Pacific island state of Nauru, much to the Kremlin's chagrin. Officials reported a turnout figure of more than 60 percent two hours before polls close at 8:00 pm (1600 GMT) and no signs of disturbances, with the initial results expected early Saturday.
Symbolically, the vote coincides with the third anniversary of Moscow's recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states, which followed Russia's five-day war with Georgia in 2008. Moscow has stationed thousands of troops in the rebel region - a lush sun-drenched coastal strip of land wedged between the Black Sea and the Caucasus Mountains - in a move Georgia describes as occupation.
"I want to call on the international community to assess this act adequately and strongly condemn it," Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Nino Kalandadze said. Abkhazia's previous president, the 62-year-old Bagapsh, died in a Moscow hospital in May following lung surgery, with his prime minister Sergei Shamba seeking to take over the job. Two challengers - vice president Alexander Ankvab and opposition leader Raul Khajimba - are taking him on in the polls that are unlikely to signal a major shift in policies or put an end to Abkhazia's isolation.