Moscow, 9 November: In the current situation (Georgian President) Mikheil Saakashvili has got a chance to win the early presidential election scheduled for 5 January (2008), president of the Politika foundation Vyacheslav Nikonov has said.

"He has a chance. Saakashvili is looking forward to a landslide victory in the presidential election, which will allow him to write off all his previous failures. He will have absolute control over administrative and media resources," Nikonov told Interfax news agency on Friday (9 November).

Saakashvili "will leave no time for any election campaign, which will in effect be taking place under the state of emergency, when all alternative candidates are either in prison, on the run or had signed a pledge not to leave the country", the political scientist said.

"When he has total control over all the mass media, opposition channels will not even have the opportunity to resume broadcasting," Nikonov said.