Opposition mayoral candidate in Poti, former Tbilisi mayor Ugulava, allowed to register for elections
Soon after the parliamentary elections in 2020, Ugulava left European Georgia due to a disagreement with the party’s head, Giga Bokeria. Photo: Gigi Ugulava/Facebook.
Tweet 
Share
The united opposition candidate for Poti mayor, former Tbilisi mayor Gigi Ugulava, has received a document from the Georgian Interior Ministry allowing him to register for the upcoming October 2 municipal race.
He stated two days ago that he could not get a document confirming that he is not a convicted sexual or narcotics felon from the ministry and noted that it was a ‘deliberate campaign’ against him.
The document is in my hands. The fight continues until victory,” Ugulava said.
However, the Georgian Interior Ministry stated that they gave him an interim document the same day he applied for it and underlined that due to ongoing cases in the court involving Ugulava, additional time was needed.
Gigi Ugulava is a joint candidate for Poti mayor of four opposition parties: the United National Movement (UNM), European Georgia, Droa and Girchi-More Freedom.
@UNMGeorgia has nominated its mayoral candidates across the country for October local elections. The candidacies are coordinated with other opposition parties. @NikaMelia5: "The time has come for us to unite and win this referendum". pic.twitter.com/54i642R6QG
— UNM Georgia (ენმ) (@UNMGeorgia) August 17, 2021
He served as the mayor of Tbilisi from 2005 to 2013 and was arrested in 2014 for the misappropriation of more than four million GEL in public funds between 2010 and 2011.
Ugulava was released in 2017 and shortly after he was appointed secretary general of the then-newly created European Georgia opposition party.
In 2020 he once again was sentenced to three years and two months in prison for the embezzlement of 48 million GEL from the Tbilisi Municipal Development Fund while in office but was pardoned by Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili.
Soon after the parliamentary elections in 2020, Ugulava left European Georgia due to a disagreement with the party’s head, Giga Bokeria.
Several opposition parties ahead of the local elections agreed to nominate joint candidates in 315 out of 664 majoritarian districts for city council spots.
The Georgian Public Defender’s Office says that ‘62 employees were subjected to various forms of pressure’ and dozens were dismissed on political grounds ahead of the October 2 municipal elections.
The candidate for Poti mayor, former Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava, says that the country’s Interior Ministry has not given him a document necessary to register for the race, which confirms that he is not a convicted felon for sexual or narcotics crimes.
The International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED) has reported 15 alleged cases of dismissal on political grounds in Georgia in the run up to the October 2 municipal elections. The organisation has also reported several cases of direct or indirect compulsion for the involvement of the educational institutions’ employees in the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party’s campaign. However, ISFED praised the process of interviewing the candidates for membership of the District Election Commission (DEC) which was broadcast live.
The united opposition, which currently includes the United National Movement (UNM), European Georgia, Droa and Girchi-More Freedom opposition parties, ‘are very likely’ to nominate former Tbilisi mayor under the UNM Gigi Ugulava for mayor of Poti in western Georgia in the October 2 municipal race, UNM head Nika Melia stated earlier today.
The election banner of the united opposition’s joint candidate for Poti mayor, former Tbilisi mayor Gigi Ugulava, has been damaged in Poti, Ugulava announced on Facebook. He stated that surveillance cameras are nearby and urged the country’s Interior Ministry to look into the issue.