IRI polls: 60% of Georgians want opposition to enter parliament, 45% support snap elections

The International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Center for Insights in Survey Research has conducted its first nationwide poll of Georgia since the 2020 parliamentary elections which says that 60% of Georgian citizens either ‘definitely’ (42%) or ‘somewhat’ (18%) do not support the opposition’s boycott of parliament. 

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Though Georgians by and large want their elected representatives to resume governing, they are evenly split on the need for early parliamentary elections: 45% support the opposition demand for snap elections, while 45% do not,” said the polls. 

Image: IRI Georgia. 

IRI Regional Director for Eurasia Stephen Nix says that ‘these findings send an important message to both the governing and opposition parties. Georgians want a functioning parliament that reflects their needs.’ 

Image: IRI Georgia. 

Regarding the pandemic, 59% of Georgians are either ‘somewhat’ (44%) or ‘very’ (15%) satisfied with their government’s overall response which is a 20-point decrease since IRI’s June 2020 survey. 

In terms of the economic response, 45%, as opposed to 56% in June 2020, are satisfied with the government’s efforts to address the economic fallout of COVID-19,” said the poll. 

Image: IRI Georgia. 

The poll says that 76% of citizens think Georgia’s economic situation has worsened either ‘somewhat’ (37%) or ‘a lot’ (39%) in the past year. At the household level, 63% state that their economic situation has worsened, and 71% describe it as either ‘somewhat or ‘very’ bad. 

Moreover, unemployment tops the list when asked to name the most important problems facing their country (65%), their town (41%) and their household (34%).

According to the polls Patriarch Ilia II, former PM Giorgi Gakharia, Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze, leader of European Georgia opposition party David Bakradze and the head of the United National Movement opposition party Nika Melia are liked the most by citizens. 

Image: IRI Georgia. 

Georgians believe that the country has good relations with the US, EU, Ukraine, Turkey and Azerbaijan and that the US, EU, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Turkey are the closest political allies. 

Image: IRI Georgia. 

88% of Georgians believe that Russia is the major threat for the county.

Image: IRI Georgia. 

36% of Georgians support further dialogue with Russia, while the figure stood at 40 % in the 2020 poll. 

59% of Georgians support the country’s joining NATO (the figure stood at 56% in 2020) and 67% support Georgia’s joining the EU ( 64% in 2020). 

• This survey was conducted on behalf of IRI’s Center for Insights in Survey Research by Dr. Rasa Alisauskiene of the public and market research company Baltic Surveys/The Gallup Organization between February 2 and February 26, 2021. 
• The fieldwork was conducted by the Institute of Polling and Marketing.
•  Data was collected using a multistage probability sampling method through in-person, in-home interviews. 
• The sample consists of 1,500 Georgians aged 18+ and eligible to vote.
• The margin of error is plus or minus 2.5 per cent, and the response rate was 75 per cent.