TBILISI, Georgia — Mikhail Saakashvili won a second term as Georgia’s president Sunday in an election that thousands of opposition protesters denounced as fraudulent, threatening instability in this former Soviet republic once considered a beacon of reform.
For the pro-Western Saakashvili, the prospect of unrest is an ironic echo of the mass demonstrations that swept him into office four years ago as a champion of democracy fighting rigged elections.
An observer mission from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe gave the election a mixed assessment, calling it a significant step for democracy while pointing to an array of violations. Russia, which vies with the West for influence in Georgia, sharply criticized the vote.
Saakashvili got nearly 53 percent of Saturday’s vote, narrowly clearing the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff. His main challenger, Levan Gachechiladze, had 27 percent.
