36 MPs of UNM election bloc request suspension of status
United National Movement-United opposition election bloc says that they will take to the street again. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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Thirty-six MPs of the United National Movement-Strength in Unity election bloc have officially asked parliament to suspend their status.
They claim that the elections were fabricated by the ruling Georgian Dream party and state that they will continue to fight from the street to force the government hold repeat elections.
The Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC) annulled the party lists of five opposition parties earlier per their request yesterday, meaning candidates on the lists would not be able to replace opposition MPs who have officially refused to take up their mandates in parliament.
The parties and election blocs which requested the annulment of their party lists on December 11 are the United National Movement-United opposition election bloc, European Georgia, Lelo, Strategy Agmashenebeli and Labour party.
The ruling party says that no repeat elections will take place. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
The remaining four parties are also expected to request the suspension of their mandates from parliament.
The diplomatic corps is now mediating talks between the ruling party and the opposition to help the parties end the political crisis.
The ruling party says that no repeat elections will take place as the elections were held ‘in line with democratic standards.’
They say that the recent recognition of the mistake by ISFED NGO in its parallel vote count data is yet further evidence that no fabrication took place.
One opposition MP has decided to enter the Supreme Council of Adjara which is the legislative body of Georgia’s Autonomous Republic of Adjara in the west.
The ruling Georgian Dream party and opposition members have responded to the decision of the head of the opposition United National Movement Grigol Vashadze to leave the party earlier today.
The Georgian Central Election Commission (CEC) has annulled the party lists of five opposition parties earlier today per their request, meaning candidates on the lists would not be able to replace opposition MPs who have officially refused to take up their mandates in parliament.
The head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Grigol Vashadze has stated that he has left the party and said that the presence of ‘odious figures’ in the party and attacks on the diplomatic corps and ‘other controversies’ pushed him to resign. Vashadze said in his Facebook post released earlier today that he has done his best as the head of the party since January 2017 to make the party stronger.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has asked the International Society For Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) to present the list of the eight per cent of election districts where, per the NGO, the ballots cast outnumber the signatures of registered voters. ISFED admitted to a mistake in its data of the parallel vote count on the weekend, while the data has been used so far by opposition parties ‘as evidence’ that the ‘elections were fabricated’.
The ruling Georgian Dream party has initiated a bill which says that if political parties refuse to take up their mandates in parliament they will not receive state funding (or have it suspended for a year), their MPs will not receive salaries and they will not be able to use free media time during municipal and parliamentary elections.
The Alliance of Patriots opposition party has requested the parliament suspend the status of their four MPs.
The candidate for the premiership Giorgi Gakharia has met with ruling Georgian Dream party MPs in parliament earlier today before the parliament votes on him and his cabinet, stating the government’s strategic goal will be to ensure further ties with the EU in the coming four years and to make an appeal for EU membership in 2024.
The Georgian parliament has passed a bill in its first reading earlier today which strips parties of state funding if they refuse to take up their mandates in parliament.
MP from a pro-Russian Alliance of Patriots opposition party Avtandil Enukidze has told Rustavi 2 TV channel that he has plans to take up his mandate in parliament.
Transparency International Georgia has stated that the ruling Georgian Dream party had almost half of all parties' total revenues and expenditures, each amounting to about 60 million GEL, last year.
Former head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Grigol Vashadze has joined Giorgi Vashadze’s Strategy Aghmashebeli ahead of the October 2 municipal elections.