Presidential elections have begun in the Georgian parliament building. Their legitimacy is not recognized by the incumbent President Salome Zurabishvili and opposition parties.
"Echo of the Caucasus" writes about this.
For the first time in Georgiaʼs history, the president is not elected by the people, but by the Electoral College. The only candidate for the presidency is football veteran Mikhail Kavelashvili, a member of the Peopleʼs Power party, which formally broke away from the ruling Georgian Dream. His candidacy was nominated by the honorary chairman of Georgian Dream, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili. The opposition calls Kavelashvili a "prominent anti-Westerner."
Mikheil Kavelashvili is the only candidate for president of Georgia.
The Electoral College consists of 300 people — Georgian deputies and deputies of the Supreme Councils of Adjara and the Abkhaz Autonomous Republic (in exile). Opposition deputies — 61 people — will not participate in the vote, and at least two deputies of the Supreme Council of the Abkhaz Autonomous Republic have also refused.
According to the law, the presence of a majority of the entire Electoral College is sufficient for holding elections — at least 151 deputies. To elect the president, at least 200 votes of the college members are required. But, presumably, the ruling party will approve Kavelashvili for the position.
At the same time, opponents of the Georgian Dream are gathering near the Georgian parliament building, and several actions are taking place. For example, people are standing with posters saying, "Show me your diploma, Kavelashvili" — the presidential candidate does not have a higher education, which is why he was unable to run for president of the Georgian Football Federation in 2015.
Special forces and additional security forces have already been mobilized on Freedom Square near the parliament.
Georgian Dream says the inauguration of a new president will take place on December 29, 2024. Incumbent President Salome Zurabishvili says her mandate will continue until a new president is elected by a new parliament. She has called the elections a “parody,” adding that they are “completely illegitimate and unconstitutional.”
Georgia is a parliamentary republic. It is governed by a cabinet of ministers headed by a prime minister, who is nominated by the party that received the most votes in the elections. The President of Georgia is the Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Forces and the ceremonial head of state, who has no real executive power.
What preceded
Parliamentary elections were held in Georgia in October. According to the Central Election Commission, the pro-government, pro-Russian party Georgian Dream — Democratic Georgia won, gaining 53.9% of the vote. Under Georgian law, this party has the right to form a government alone. The European Parliament did not recognize the election results.
Four more pro-Western opposition parties broke the 5% barrier. The opposition and the president disagreed with the results, and protests began.
On November 28, 2024, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced that Georgia would abandon EU accession negotiations until 2028. He explained that 2028 would supposedly be the time when Georgia would be economically ready to begin accession negotiations. After that, large-scale protests began in the country, which were dispersed by security forces using water cannons and tear gas.
So the Georgian presidential elections are taking place against a backdrop of growing tension in the country.
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