Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has claimed victory in a snap presidential election after a disputed exit poll showed him winning in a first round.
The exit poll, based on interim figures, found Mr Saakashvili was set to win 52.5%, just crossing the 50% barrier for victory.
However, the margin of error is up to 3%.
Mr Saakashvili's nearest challenger, wine entrepreneur Levan Gachechiladze, got 28.5%, according to the poll.
Official results are expected to start coming in overnight. If no single candidate wins 50%, the two frontrunners will face off in a second round two weeks later.
Opposition leaders insist the poll cannot be trusted, arguing that the four television channels paying for the poll were pro-government.
Mr Saakashvili, 40, faced six challengers today in the biggest test of his authority since he swept to power in the 2003 Rose Revolution.
He called the election a year early in response to violent clashes between police and protestors in November, violence that badly dented his image as one of the ex-Soviet Union's leading democratic reformers.
