Georgian ruling party claims “foreign interference”, “violations” by “radical” opposition ahead of elections

Givi Mikanadze, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Friday alleged foreign interference and “destructive actions” by the “radical opposition” and several non-governmental organisations in the lead-up to the October 26 general elections.

During a press briefing, Mikanadze claimed “efforts by external forces to interfere in the pre-election process and influence voter intentions have visibly intensified”. 

He referenced specific cases, including the recent decision by the United States Treasury Department to impose financial sanctions on four Georgian citizens, two of whom are senior law enforcement officials, while visa restrictions were imposed on 60 high-ranking Government and municipal officials, lawmakers, and their family members.

Mikanadze criticised the measures, claiming they came “without presenting evidence or justification” and could be viewed as “interference in the electoral process and an attempt to sway the electorate”.

The MP also mentioned the recent visit of Michael Roth, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the German Bundestag, to Georgia, during which Roth met with opposition figures, civil society representatives, and President Salome Zourabichvili. 

Mikanadze alleged “after each meeting, Roth issued statements critical of and insulting toward the ruling party”.

In recent months, there has been an increase in statements threatening sanctions against high-ranking government officials, and we have witnessed a foreign politician's visit to Georgia aimed at conducting agitation against the ruling team. It is clear that as election day approaches, such forces have intensified their attempts to interfere in the pre-election process and influence voters' choices", the MP said.

On incidents of alleged violence, Mikanadze said Vakhtang Lemonjava, a member of the opposition Coalition for Change, had reportedly vandalised a vehicle of a ruling party representative this month. He added the law enforcement authorities were currently investigating the case.

“Unregistered” election campaigning

In his comments, Mikanadze accused the public movement Vote for Europe of being “actively engaged in anti-government propaganda” and claimed its representatives had “repeatedly criticised the ruling party through opposition media channels”. In response, he noted the Anti-Corruption Bureau had petitioned Tbilisi City Court to access financial records of the movement and its founders, citing the group’s “politically motivated activities”.

"Instead of addressing these concerns, domestic organisations such as the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association and the Georgian Democracy Initiative criticised the Bureau”, Mikanadze said.

He also highlighted political donations made by members of the movement’s board to opposition parties over the years, saying the following individuals had made the donations:

• Ivane Chkonia: ₾1,000 ($370) to Droa party (2021)
• Giorgi Rukhadze: ₾4,920 ($1,800) to the Christian-Democratic party (2015)
• Sopiko Chkonia: ₾500 ($184) to Droa (2022)
• Giorgi Papelishvili: ₾501 ($185) to Paata Burchuladze’s party (2016)
• Giorgi Taktakishvili: ₾3,115 ($1,151) to National Forum (2017)
• Nikoloz Shurghaia: ₾35,000 ($13,000) to Lelo party (2020-2021)

Alleged use of administrative resources

Mikanadze also claimed President Salome Zourabichvili had engaged in “inappropriate use” of administrative resources by calling for opposition parties Gakharia for Georgia and Strong Georgia to unite, inviting them to the Orbeliani Presidential Palace for consultations earlier this week.

The meeting, which took place under the President’s mediation on Tuesday, raises concerns about a breach of neutrality mandated by the Constitution. Such actions by the President can be viewed as the use of administrative resources for political positioning”, he said.

Media and opposition criticism

During the briefing, the MP criticised media outlets and opposition parties for allegedly spreading disinformation and attempting to “interfere with the election process”. 

He accused opposition-aligned Formula TV of having recently circulated “false claims” that the European Union had agreed to suspend visa-free travel for Georgia after the elections.

The MP also highlighted several incidents of alleged opposition interference during the ruling party’s campaign and claimed on September 14, Dimitri Kvantaliani, a United National Movement member, had reportedly attempted to disrupt a GD meeting in Kutaisi, western Georgia, sharing the event on social media. He added Lekso Valiauri from the Coalition for Change had allegedly verbally insulted ruling party members during a meeting in the central city of Gori earlier this month.

Mikanadze also accused broadcasters, including TV Pirveli and Formula TV, of removing Georgian Dream political advertisements, prompting the court to fine the former ₾5,000 ($1,847) for the violation after an address by the National Communication Commission. He claimed that broadcasters were creating an “unequal election environment” by not airing ruling party ads while promoting opposition content.

Election process allegations

Mikanadze also alleged that opposition parties were spreading “misleading information” about the election process. He noted that, despite efforts by the election administration to introduce a Code of Conduct for political parties based on European election standards, only six out of 27 parties had signed the document. “Most opposition parties did not support the initiative”, Mikanadze said.

He also claimed that some opposition members had disrupted election commission training sessions, later making “false claims” they had been denied access to observe the process. Mikanadze claimed such actions “further distorted” the situation.

Opposition media reported that members appointed by European Georgia, the National Movement, and Strategy Aghmashenebeli were allegedly prevented from observing the training sessions for polling station members held by the district election commissions of Isani and Mtatsminda. According to information posted on the CEC's official website, the Election Administration allows observer organizations and party-appointed members in district election commissions to monitor these training sessions without any interference, to ensure a high standard of transparency in the election process. Most of them do take advantage of this opportunity. In the aforementioned case, members appointed by these parties attempted to disrupt the training sessions, later framing the issue as if they were not given the opportunity to observe the process", Mikanadze said.

The MP concluded his briefing by accusing local monitoring organisations, such as the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association, the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy, and the Transparency International Georgia, of “failing to report” on the violations mentioned in his speech. 

He claimed despite the repeated public and systematic disclosure of specific violations, the organisations had “not even issued a basic statement, which clearly demonstrates their bias and alignment with a particular party”.