Georgian Dream was opposed by the four main opposition groups who declared victory when competing exit polls were announced shortly after the polls closed at 20:00 local time (16:00 GMT).

If Georgian Dream’s victory is confirmed, the party will have a parliamentary majority, raising fears about the country’s EU membership. The party became increasingly authoritarian and adopted laws similar to those used by Russia to restrict freedom of expression. Following the adoption of such a law earlier this year, Brussels suspended Georgia’s EU membership process.

Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder of Georgian Dream, declared victory immediately after the polls closed, saying, “It is rare in the world for the same party to be so successful in such a difficult situation.”

The pre-election campaign in the South Caucasus nation of 3.7 million people bordering Russia was dominated by foreign policy and marked by allegations of a bitter fight for votes and a smear campaign.

Some Georgians complained that they were intimidated and pressured to vote for the Georgian Dream, while the opposition accused the party of waging a “hybrid war” against its citizens.

The largest opposition party, the United National Movement, said its headquarters was attacked on election day. Georgian media also reported that two people were hospitalized after being attacked outside polling stations, one in the western city of Zugdidi and the other in the town of Marneuli, south of the capital Tbilisi.

There were also numerous reports of voting irregularities.

A video shared on social media on Saturday also showed a man filling ballot papers into a box at a polling station in Marneuli. The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs launched an investigation, the Central Election Commission said that a criminal case was opened and all the results obtained from the ballot box will be declared invalid.

Ivanishvili, the dubious billionaire who founded the Georgian Dream and made a fortune in Russia ahead of the parliamentary elections, has again promised to ban opposition parties if his party wins.

Speaking at a pro-government rally in Tbilisi on Wednesday, Ivanishvili said Georgian Dream would hold opposition parties “fully accountable to the full force of the law” for “war crimes” committed against the Georgian people. He did not reveal what crimes he believed the opposition had committed.

Many believed this election to be the most important vote since Georgia gained independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili called it an “existential choice.”

Georgians “want European integration, they want progress, and they want policies that will bring us a better, more stable future,” Qristine Tordia, 29, told The Associated Press shortly after voting in Tbilisi.

Nearly 80 percent of Georgians support joining the EU, polls show, and the country’s constitution requires leaders to remain members of the bloc and NATO.

But Brussels has indefinitely suspended Georgia’s bid to join the EU after the ruling party adopted a “Russian law” restricting freedom of expression in June. Many Georgians fear that the Georgian Dream is pushing the country towards authoritarianism and destroying hopes of joining the EU.

“The election is not only about changing the government, but also about whether Georgia will survive, because Ivanishvili’s government means Russia,” Nika Gvaramia, leader of the opposition group Coalition for Change, said in a statement before the polls closed.

Ivanishvili voted under heavy security on Saturday morning. He did not answer the question of whether the AP wanted to form an alliance with Russia.

He said the election was a choice between “a government that will serve you” and “electing representatives of a foreign country who will only carry out the wishes of the foreign country.” In the elections, he and his officials claimed that a “Global War Party” was trying to influence the EU and the US, expand the conflict in Ukraine and remove the Georgian Dream from power.

Opposition parties ignored Zourabichvili’s demand to merge into a single party, but signed his “charter” to implement the reforms required for EU accession.

The ruling and opposition parties have told voters they will pursue EU membership, even though the laws passed by the Georgian Dream have suspended that hope.

At last week’s EU summit, EU leaders said they had “serious concerns about the steps taken by the Georgian government.”

Georgian Dream was opposed by three coalitions: Unity National Movement, Coalition for Change Lelo and Strong Georgia.

The Gakharia for Georgia party, founded by former prime minister Giorgi Gakharia, said it would not form an alliance with anyone, but would support the opposition to form a government if they received enough votes.