Key Takeaways
- Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili called the upcoming presidential election a ‘parody’ and illegitimate.
- The only contender for the presidential post is former football player and current lawmaker Mikheil Kavelashvili.
- Zourabichvili said she will not leave the post of president after the end of her term and will be ‘with the people until the end’.
Georgia: Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili, whose term expires on December 16, called the presidential election scheduled for Saturday a “parody” and said it is illegitimate.
On Saturday, a college of 300 parliamentarians and deputies of various levels will elect a new president in the Georgian parliament building. The only contender for this post is former football player and current lawmaker Mikheil Kavelashvili, nominated by the ruling Georgian Dream party. The inauguration of the new president will take place on December 29.
The Georgian State Security Service warned that foreign intelligence services are planning to disrupt the presidential election, sparking concerns about the legitimacy of the process.
“I don’t even know what to call this, a provocation or a parody. Probably, this entire illegitimate process is a parody,” Zourabichvili said at a briefing on Friday.
According to her, the upcoming presidential election is “insulting” to the Georgian people. She also stated that she does not intend to leave the post of president after the end of her term and will be “with the people until the end.”
Parliamentary elections were held in Georgia on October 26. According to the country’s Central Election Commission (CEC), the ruling Georgian Dream party, which advocates maintaining relations with Russia and is against sanctions imposed on Russia, received 53.93% of the vote. Four opposition parties also entered parliament, receiving a total of 37.78%.
Opposition representatives said they did not recognise the CEC data. OSCE Special Coordinator Pascal Allizard noted the good organization of the elections in Georgia, while stating a number of violations recorded by observers. Zourabichvili, who helps the pro-European opposition, despite the fact that according to the constitution the president must be non-partisan, called for protests due to the election results.
Another series of opposition protests began in Georgia on November 28, after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced his decision to suspend consideration of the issue of starting talks on the country’s membership in the European Union until 2028.
Protesters reportedly used firecrackers, stones, bottles, and even Molotov cocktails. Riot police in response used special equipment, including water cannons.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday called on all Georgian political forces to engage in dialogue in order to resolve the situation.
His video message was published by the French Embassy in Tbilisi.
