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.’
The United National Movement (UNM) opposition party, which won 34 of 60 opposition seats in the 2020 parliamentary elections in the 150-member parliament, has presented mayoral candidates for the October 2 municipal race.
Head of the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party Irakli Kobakhidze has stated that ‘no elections will take place until the one scheduled in 2024.’
The head of opposition United National Movement (UNM) party Nika Melia, who has been nominated for Tbilisi mayor by several opposition parties, has stated he is giving up his parliamentary mandate to prepare for the October 2 municipal elections.
A number of opposition parties have put forward the United National Movement chair Nika Melia for the post of Tbilisi mayor, while Droa movement leader Elene Khoshtaria has been put forward for the City Council (Sakrebulo) chair for the upcoming municipal elections in October.
Chairman of eastern Georgian Rustavi city council Levan Oniani has been dismissed from his post by secret ballot vote earlier today following his exit from the ruling Georgian Dream party.
The United National Movement (UNM), European Georgia, Droa and Girchi-More Freedom opposition parties have nominated former Tbilisi Mayor under UNM Gigi Ugulava for Poti mayor in western Georgia ahead of the October 2 municipal elections.
The largest opposition party United National Movement (UNM) and the opposition European Georgia party have presented additional mayoral candidates for the upcoming October 2 municipal race.
Centrist opposition party Lelo for Georgia has nominated candidates for Tbilisi mayor and head of Tbilisi City Assembly late yesterday, ahead of the October 2 municipal elections.
The opposition United National Movement (UNM) party claims the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party will not receive more than 35% of votes in the four cities of Georgia in the upcoming municipal elections.
Georgian TV channel Imedi has refused to air a political advertisement of opposition party European Georgia in the run up to the October 2 elections due to alleged ‘hate speech content.'
The ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party says that their candidate for Tbilisi mayor, incumbent Kakha Kaladze, will receive 60.1% in the October 2 local elections. Per GD’s poll, the head of the United National Movement (UNM) Nika Melia, who is the joint candidate of the opposition parties for Tbilisi mayor, will receive 29.2% in self-government elections.
Nigerian businessman Arinze Richard Ogbunuju, who has been nominated for Tbilisi mayor in the October 2 municipal elections by Our United Georgia initiative group, says that incumbent Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze, who has been renominated for the post by the ruling Georgian Dream party, ‘has already done his utmost.’
Leader of the opposition Strategy Aghmashenebeli party Giorgi Vashadze has presented a new political platform, Third Force, which unites members of several other opposition political parties ahead of the October 2 municipal elections. Opposition party Strategy Aghmashenebeli, which received four of 60 opposition seats in the parliamentary elections 2020, will participate in the upcoming elections on behalf of the Third Force.
The ruling party mayoral candidate and incumbent mayor Kakha Kaladze has presented the candidates for Tbilisi City Council (Sakrebulo) membership for the upcoming local-self government elections.
Former President of Georgian Mikheil Saakashvili, who currently chairs the Executive Committee of the Ukrainian National Reforms Council, has called on the personnel of the Georgian armed forces ‘to actively participate in the October 2 municipal elections' in Georgia, because the country 'must be saved' from the current Georgian Dream leadership.
The opposition European Georgia party has nominated members for its Tbilisi party list earlier today in the run up to the October 2 self-government elections. Leader and executive secretary of the party Akaki Bobokhidze introduced 35 people from the party for Tbilisi City Council.