Georgian parliament elects new chairperson

Archil Talakvadze, 36, a leader of the Georgian Dream ruling party majority, has been elected the new chairperson of the legislative body after the resignation of Irakli Kobakhidze on June 21.

Talakvadze was elected to the post with 94 votes with none against, as the opposition parties declined to participate in the plenary session earlier today after the Georgian Dream refused to discuss their resolution text on the dismissal of Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia.

Kobakhidze resigned after the protests in Tbilisi, which were sparked by the presence of Russian MPs in the Georgian parliament  and an address made by Russian MP Segey Gavrilov from the chair of the Georgian parliamentary speaker during the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy on June 20.

The ruling party said that Kobakhidze decided himself to resign. Photo: Parliament's press office.

 Talakvadze, who is a graduate of the Georgian State Medical University, had served in the Georgian Interior Ministry, worked for the international organisations in Georgia and in the Ombudsman’s office.

Talakvadze’s working experience is as follows:

• Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, deputy interior minister - 2014 – 2016.
• Ministry of Corrections, deputy-minister - 2012 – 2014.
• G3, USAID, deputy director - 2011 – 2012.
• Office of the Georgian Public Defender, advisor on management issues – 2010.
• Office of the Public Defender, advisor - 2008 – 2009.
• Office of the Public Defender, project manager - 2007 – 2008.
• USAID, project coordinator - 2006 – 2007.