Four opposition parties present joint candidates for Tbilisi City Assembly
The opposition parties have presented joint candidates for nine constituencies of Tbilisi. Photo: IPN.
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Four opposition parties, the United National Movement (UNM), Droa, Girchi-More Freedom and European Georgia have presented joint majoritarian candidates for Tbilisi City Assembly ahead of the October 2 municipal elections.
The joint candidates have been proposed for Samgori, Isani, Chugureti, Gldani, Vake, Krtsanisi, Nadzaladevi, Mtatsminda and Saburtalo constituencies of Tbilisi.
- Opposition parties put forward Melia for Tbilisi mayor, Droa leader Khoshtaria for Sakrebulo chair
- UNM presents mayoral candidates for October municipal race
The head of the UNM Nika Melia, who is the joint candidate of the opposition parties for Tbilisi mayor, has stated that the candidates have chances to win the race in the first round of elections.
Side-note: @UNMGeorgia itself is not presenting candidates in Tbilisi, but supporting those of @Girchi_GE, @EuropeanGeorgia & Droa!
— Droa (@MovementDroa) August 17, 2021
Melia reiterated that the municipal elections ‘are also a referendum.’
The April 2021 EU-mediated agreement between the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party and the majority of opposition parties proposed the holding of repeat parliamentary elections if the ruling Georgian Dream party received less than 43 per cent of votes in the October 2 municipal elections.
However, ahead of the elections the ruling party withdrew from the agreement ‘because of the refusal of the main opposition party, the UNM, to join the agreement.’
The UNM did not join the agreement because it disliked a stipulation on the amnesty of convicts of June 2019 protests in Tbilisi.
The opposition parties are still hopeful that the ruling party may accept the holding of repeat parliamentary elections if it receives less than 43 per cent of votes in the upcoming elections.. However, the Georgian Dream says that ‘no repeat elections will take place.’