Ruling party makes deal with its majoritarian MPs, announces constitutional changes
The Georgian Dream ruling party says it has made a deal with its majoritarian MPs who are demanding a fully majoritarian electoral system. Photo: Georgian Dream press office.
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The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party has made an agreement with its majoritarian MPs who are proposing a fully majoritarian electoral system and announced constitutional amendments before the 2020 parliamentary elections.
The party says that after the amendments take place, there will be no demands for a transition to fully majoritarian elections by its MPs.
Ruling party MP Mamuka Mdinaradze stated after a party meeting earlier today that most of the GD members are against fully majoritarian elections.
However, the party “shared the fears” of its MPs [who propose fully majoritarian elections] that after 2020 parliamentary elections through the 2024 elections “there would be continued talks on snap parliamentary elections with a fully proportional electoral system [by the opposition] which would create political instability and help several political forces trigger artificial conflicts.”
The opposition is accusing the ruling party of "deliberately rejecting" a bill on early transition to a fully proportional electoral system. Photo: IPN.
We agreed with our MPs proposing fully majoritarian elections that they will withdraw their initiative and instead we, the ruling party, will ensure the constitutional changes before the 2020 elections which will ensure that any possible snap election before 2024 to be held with a mixed electoral system,” Mdinaradze said.
He stated that the parliament elected via snap elections between 2020 and 2024 will be eligible only before 2024 parliamentary elections, as starting from 2024 Georgia moves to a fully proportional electoral system, according to the Georgian constitution.
He stated that if the ruling party fails to carry out the changes to the law, the majoritarian MPs will continue pushing forward their initiative and will demand a referendum, together with the 2020 elections, on the transition to a fully majoritarian elections.
The agreement inside the ruling party comes amid protests of the opposition and civic groups in Tbilisi and regions, sparked by the rejection of the GD proposed election bill on November 14 which should have ensured an an early transition to a fully proportional elections starting from 2020 instead of scheduled 2024.
Now the opposition is demanding the German electoral model for 2020 elections which distributes seats in the legislative body based on votes received in proportional elections.
Eleven majoritarian MPs of the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party, who rejected the party proposed bill on an early transition to a fully proportional elections on November 14, are set to collect 200,000 signatures from voters to initiate a bill to parliament on the transition to a fully majoritarian elections from 2024.
About 30 opposition parties, who have offered the transfer to ‘an adapted version of the German electoral model’ for the 2020 parliamentary elections, say they will register the bill in parliament in the coming days and are requesting Georgian Public Defender Nino Lomjaria send the bill to the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) for evaluations.
The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party proposed bill on holding of 2020 parliamentary elections with a fully proportional voting system and a zero threshold has been scrapped as 101 MPs instead of mandatory 113 voted for it. 141 of total 150 MPs have been registered for the vote earlier today. However, 37 abstained from voting and three voted against.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has expressed his hope that MPs “will fully share the responsibility assumed towards democratic development of the country,” and vote for the ruling Georgian Dream party’s proposed election bill, which stipulates a move to a fully proportional election system for 2020 instead of 2024.
The third meeting between the ruling Georgian Dream party and opposition over the electoral changes has yielded no results. The opponents met in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi earlier today to discuss the possibility of moving to a multi-mandate system starting in 2020.
The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party has made a new offer to the opposition ahead of today’s meeting, stating that they are ready for 100 spots in parliament to be elected via the proportional electoral system and the remaining 50 per the majoritarian system in the 2020 parliamentary elections.
The parliamentary opposition has announced that demonstrators will block the parliament building in central Tbilisi in February and the opposition will organise ‘intense protests’ against the current state leadership around the issue of 2020 parliamentary elections. “Let’s see how Ivanishvili [founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party Bidzina Ivanishvili] and the current state leadership will resist the protests,” leader of the European Georgia opposition party Giga Bokeria stated earlier today.
Opposition parties have postponed today’s demonstrations on election issues as six individuals, four minors, their mother and a relative, died in a fire in Bagdati municipality of western Georgia late yesterday.“It is a huge tragedy. We need to think about it and mourn,” leader of the European Georgia opposition party Gigi Ugulava stated earlier today, urging the ruling Georgian Dream party to also postpone the opening of the spring session in parliament today.