Georgia counting down for Sunday’s presidental election

He has also promised to make up for what he has called a "lost decade" under Shevardnadze when the once-affluent republic slipped into a quagmire of poverty, corruption and chaos.
"The day is coming when our broken dream, the age-old aspirations of the Georgian nation, … will be revived," Saakashvili told supporters at a campaign rally late Friday.
Sunday’s presidential vote is being watched closely for evidence that the new regime will make good on its promise to break with the past, when elections were routinely rigged.
Saakashvili’s challengers in the election are Teimur Shashiashvili, a former regional governor, lawyer Kartlos Gharibashvili, Roin Liparteliani and Zurab Kelekhsashvili, both heads of minor parties, and Zaza Sikharulidze, a disabled rights campaigner.
Voting will take place between 8:00 am (0400 GMT) and 8:00 pm, except in the separatist-controlled territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which are boycotting the vote.