Georgia's president refuses to step down amidst election chaos
The President of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, announced that she will remain in her position until her successor is chosen by a "legal parliament." "The illegal parliament cannot elect a new president," she said.
"I remain your president; there is no legitimate parliament existing. Accordingly, the illegitimate parliament cannot elect the new president. Thus, inauguration will not take place. And my mandate continues until there is the legitimately elected president," stated President Salome Zurabishvili in an address to the nation.
As a result of changes in the law, the president was, for the last time, elected by the public in direct elections in 2018. The new head of state is to be selected by a special college, which includes deputies, regional government representatives, and judges of several important courts.
The ruling Georgian Dream party, which, according to data provided by officials, won the parliamentary elections, announced on Wednesday that its candidate for the presidency is politician and former soccer player Mikheil Kavelashvili.
In October, parliamentary elections were held in Georgia, in which the ruling party, Georgian Dream, achieved an overwhelming victory. The party has led the country for years, generously supported by Georgia's richest man, Bidzina Ivanishvili. Observers pointed to a series of frauds and irregularities in the elections and in the period preceding them.
On November 20th, President Zurabishvili filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court, demanding the rejection of the Central Electoral Commission's report, which would mean recognizing the elections as falsified. The court has not yet addressed the complaint.
Meanwhile, during this time, parliament convened and recognized the mandates of all deputies, which was a violation of the constitution.
Currently, in Georgia, particularly in Tbilisi, there are large protests. The demonstrations are primarily related to the government's decision, which declared that Georgia will not engage in negotiations to join the EU nor take advantage of EU grants until the end of 2028. The President of Georgia, Salome Zurabishvili, stated that the government has thus declared war on its own people.
