Georgian President announces creation of council to prepare for new parliamentary elections
President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili (photo: Getty Images)
Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili has announced the creation of a council to prepare for new parliamentary elections. She warned the ruling party, Georgian Dream, that if no agreement is reached by December 29, the regime will collapse, reports NewsGeorgia.
According to Zourabichvili, a document outlining the minimum conditions for holding new elections, which are expected to take place soon, is already being prepared. She noted that these elections will bring truly new forces and called for readiness.
Earlier, speaking at a rally, the president gave the ruling party, Georgian Dream, six days to announce the date for the new elections. In response, the party called this demand absurd and ignored it.
"The crisis is getting worse and deeper every day, and the ruling party either doesn't see it, or even more, I would say that it closes its eyes, doesn't want to see it, and acts as if everything is fine. As if the main thing is to illuminate the city or organize a Christmas village, or put up a Christmas tree, or organize a concert - when no one is in a festive mood," Zourabichvili stated.
She emphasized that no matter how much the ruling party Georgian Dream tries to turn a blind eye to the situation in the country, it cannot change this reality, and reality is what is before us, what we all see, feel, and what we must fix — it is the crisis.
NewsGeorgia notes that it remains unclear how Zourabichvili plans to act on December 29 — just two days before the New Year, Georgian Dream has scheduled the inauguration of the new president.
However, Zourabichvili stated that if no agreement is reached with the Georgian Dream regarding new parliamentary elections by December 29, we will reach elections through the collapse of the regime.
She did not explain exactly what form of regime collapse she had in mind but reiterated that she had no intention of resigning from her presidential duties.
Elections in Georgia
On December 14, the electoral college in the Georgian parliament elected former footballer Mikheil Kavelashvili as the country's president. He was the only candidate nominated by the ruling party, Georgian Dream.
Ahead of the election, the current president, Salome Zourabichvili, declared that she would not recognize the election results. She also stated that she would remain in the presidential palace.
This situation followed the parliamentary elections held in late October 2024, in which the pro-Russian party Georgian Dream won, despite opinion polls predicting that opposition parties would achieve better results.
Subsequently, protests erupted across the country, with people demanding new elections.
