Runner-up in presidential race will not attend presidential inauguration
Opposition presidential candidate Grigol Vashadze says that Salome Zurabishvili is an “illegitimate president.” Photo: Grigol Vashadze’s press office.
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Grigol Vashadze, the opposition candidate in the Georgian presidential elections, will not attend the inauguration ceremony of the new president Salome Zurabishvili.
Vashadze’s office has stated that the reason behind the decision is that they “do not recognise” Zurabishvili as the president.
We believe that the elections were conducted with irregularities and the pre-election period was run through total bribing and threatening of voters [by the ruling party],” the coalition of ten opposition parties says.
Before making the statement Zurabishvili said that Vashadze would be invited to the ceremony if he recognised the elections and her victory.
The presidential inauguration will take place in the town of Telavi in eastern Georgia on 16 December.
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