TBILISI, Georgia (CNN) -- A state of emergency is declared in Georgia Saturday after President Eduard Shevardnadze denounces a coup attempt.

But parliamentary speaker and leading opposition figure Nino Burdzhanadze appeared on television to declare herself acting president.

Shevardnadze, who is believed to be at the ministry of defense, issued a statement denouncing the coup which happened as he addressed the convening of parliament. He has vowed to fight protesters.

He was hustled out of the country's parliament after anti-government protesters stormed the building.

Masked men with machine guns in pick-up trucks surrounded the president's car as he left the scene. Other politicians had fled the chamber also.

Shevardnadze had been speaking to parliament, swearing in a new government, after controversial elections.

Dozens of demonstrators forced their way into the chamber after about 20 minutes waving flags, chanting and banging desks.

Chaotic scenes developed outside with shuffling and pushing, while protesters burnt flags and placards. No gun fire has been heard.

Police appeared to run away from the scene, leaving protesters in control of the square.

Shevardnadze has in the past refused to stand down until the end of his tenure in 2005 despite weeks of protests against the November 2 election.

A stand-off had developed between pro and anti-government supporters Friday in Freedom Square outside the parliament.

The opposition parties -- the National Movement and the United Democrats -- claim Shevardnadze rigged the elections in favor of parties loyal to him.

The Georgian president -- who has held office since 1992 -- has warned Georgians that demonstrations could provoke a civil war.

When the official election results were announced, the president's Party for a New Georgia and the allied Revival Party took first and second place. The National Movement, the largest opposition party, came in third.

National Movement leader Mikhail Saakashvili believes his party should have come in first, suggesting there was voter fraud.

The Republic of Georgia, with approximately five million inhabitants, is among the poorest countries in the former Soviet Union. The average daily wage is about $1 while pensioners get less than 25 cents a day.

But geopolitically, the country is of enormous importance. Georgia wants to join NATO. The United States has just under 100 servicemen in country, including more than two dozen Marines training Georgian soldiers in counter terrorism tactics.

Russia also has troops in Georgia on several bases left over from Soviet days.

An international consortium is building an oil and gas pipeline through Georgia to move oil from the Caspian Sea to a Turkish port. Caspian oil is seen as a way to decrease dependence on oil from the Persian Gulf. CNN's Moscow Bureau Chief Jill Dougherty said: "Nobody want this country to collapse."