Opposition groups demand snap election under international administration

Georgian opposition groups have demanded new elections be held under international administration.

The demand was announced on behalf of the four key opposition groups that passed the parliamentary threshold in Saturday’s vote by Giorgi Vashadze, one of the leaders of Unity — United Movement.

Addressing thousands of Georgians gathered outside the parliament in Tbilisi on Monday evening, Vashadze vowed that none of the four major opposition groups — Unity — National Movement, the Coalition for Change, Strong Georgia, and the For Georgia party — would recognise the results of the ‘illegitimate’ elections and that all of them would renounce their electoral lists.

Vashadze, who chairs the Strategy Aghmashenebeli party, insisted they had no intention of engaging in any form of dialogue with the ruling Georgian Dream party and reiterated a call for snap elections to be held under international administration, rather than the Georgian Central Election Commission.

Anna Natsvlishvili, a leader within the Strong Georgia opposition grouping, voiced another demand — that the authorities made voters’ lists public within the following 24 hours.

Among the first to address the crowd in front of parliament was Georgia’s President Salome Zourabichvili, who reiterated that the election was fraudulent and ‘stolen’, and that efforts to expose election misconduct through evidence had to be continued to prove it. 

‘No one has the right to do that, and you will not allow it […] It is time for us to calmly, resolutely, and purposefully defend our vote’, she said. 

Zourabichvili emphasised the importance of gathering evidence of election fraud, describing it as a ‘massive, premeditated operation that stole our votes, took away our parliament, and undermined our constitution’.

‘I can pledge that I will stay with you to the end on this European path’, Zourabichvili added.

While leaders of the three remaining groups stood at the tribune, For Georgia party chair and former Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia was seen nearby among the crowd. 

Some opposition supporters began to question Gakharia’s commitment to opposition unity after, unlike other opposition leaders, he was notably absent from President Zourabichvili’s press conference on Sunday evening, where she announced that she did not recognise the election results. For Georgia reportedly sent their member Dimitri Tskitishvili to attend in his place.

At Monday’s demonstration in Tbilisi, Aleko Elisashvili, chair of the Citizens party and a leader within the Strong Georgia alliance, decided to address the elephant in the room directly in his speech.

‘This is not the time for posturing but for united struggle. Once we defeat them [Georgian Dream], we can argue and criticise each other […] But right now, we must find the strength within ourselves to rise above our grievances, our bitterness, and shake each other’s hands, because Georgia is in danger, and we must all save our Georgia’, he insisted. 

Appearing at the demonstration alongside other leaders of his party, Gakharia asserted earlier that day that For Georgia would ‘not legitimise the illegitimate parliament’. He emphasised that the priority should be on gathering evidence of election fraud, which he claimed could not have occurred without the involvement of the State Security Service, the Central Election Commission, and the Justice Ministry. His allegations aligned closely with the statement issued on Monday by the My Vote election observer group.

[Read more: Local observers outline scheme of ‘mass election fraud’ in Georgia’s parliamentary vote]

Victor Orban booed in Tbilisi

In her speech to the crowd in front of parliament on Monday night, Zourabichvili said that ‘no one, except for one person who passed through here, recognises the current elections, but everyone tells us that we must continue the investigation [into election fraud] and see it through to the end’. 

Although several national leaders congratulated the Georgian Dream-led government after Saturday’s vote, Zourabichvili’s comment appeared aimed at Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who was booed and met with whistles by protesters as he left the Tbilisi Marriott hotel near the demonstration.

It was the second time Zourabichvili criticised Orbán’s visit to Georgia, describing it as his support for Georgian Dream without a mandate to represent the European Union — a point also echoed by several European officials, including EU High Representative Josep Borrell.

Orbán is the only EU leader to congratulate Georgian Dream and perhaps the first national leader to do so.

‘Georgia is a conservative, Christian and pro-Europe state. Instead of useless lecturing, they need our support on their European path’, Orbán stated on X as he landed in Tbilisi on Monday evening.

Official visit to #Georgia after the elections. Georgia is a conservative, Christian and pro-Europe state. Instead of useless lecturing, they need our support on their European path. 🇭🇺🇬🇪 pic.twitter.com/xMVQu5aorI

— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) October 28, 2024

Also on Monday, the foreign ministers of 13 EU countries, including the Central European nations of Poland and Czechia, issued a joint statement calling Orbán’s visit to Georgia ‘premature’ and condemning the reported electoral violations on Saturday as ‘incompatible with the standards expected from a candidate to the European Union’.

‘They are a betrayal of the Georgian people’s legitimate European aspiration’, the statement read.