Opposition parties reject December 14 presidential election as illegitimate

Three major opposition coalitions in Georgia— United National Movement, Coalition for Change, and Strong Georgia—have issued a joint statement declaring their refusal to recognize the December 14 presidential election scheduled by what they call the “parliament seized by Ivanishvili.” The statement emphasizes that the current parliament lacks both international and domestic legitimacy.

“We unequivocally declare that the only legitimate state institution in Georgia is the presidency, and therefore the legitimate representative of the state is Salome Zourabichvili. We do not recognize the presidential election scheduled for December 14 by the so-called parliament, which has neither international nor socio-political legitimacy,” the statement reads.

The opposition further argues that the current parliament, which they describe as illegitimate, has no authority to elect a president. As such, they maintain that Salome Zourabichvili remains the legitimate President of Georgia, Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Forces, and the highest representative in foreign relations.