Georgia votes for president to succeed Saakashvili

Georgians are voting Sunday for a president to succeed Mikhail Saakashvili, who during nearly a decade in power has turned this former Soviet republic into a fledgling democracy and one of the staunchest allies of the United States.

For Saakashvili, it is a bitter departure. The vote is expected to cement the control of his rival, billionaire Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, whose coalition routed Saakashvili's party in a parliamentary election a year ago. (AP)