CONSTITUTIONALITY OF DIFFERENTIAL APPROACH IN ELECTORAL DISPUTES – SCRUTINY TESTS

PRACTICE OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF GEORGIA

Abstract

The Constitutional Court of Georgia (hereafter the Constitutional Court) attaches great importance to the protection of rights. Accordingly, in order to assess an interference with the rights, the Court uses tests of strict scrutiny and rational differentiation that are established by it.

The Court is guided by assessment tests on constitutionality of differentiation during the discussion about a violation of rights in the electoral sphere. However, in the course of solving electoral disputes, an assessment standard of constitutionality of differentiation used by it, is not the same. In one case the Court applies the strict scrutiny test, while in other cases, the test of rational differentiation.

For illustrating miscellaneous practice of an assessment of constitutionality of differentiation in electoral disputes, in the first chapter of this paper, assessment tests on interference with rights, widely-established in Georgia and abroad, will be analyzed. The second chapter will be focused on the Georgian Constitutional Court’s decisions, regarding an application of assessment tests on constitutionality of differentiation in electoral sphere and in conclusion, the results of analysis will be summarized.