Gakharia for Georgia rejects opposition appeal to cancel parliamentary lists as ‘populist’

Gakharia for Georgia opposition on Tuesday dismissed the opposition parties Unity – National Movement and Coalition for Change as engaging in populism over their appeal to the Central Election Commission (CEC) to cancel the parliamentary lists.

Beka Liluashvili, a leader of Gakharia for Georgia, said in a Facebook video that the request was legally impossible and that it was a disappointment to voters.

Liluashvili stressed his party “listens carefully to its supporters and maintains a consistent political strategy”, stating, “we will not give legitimacy to this parliament”.

The appeal follows the opposition’s refusal to accept the results of the 2024 parliamentary elections, which showed the parties were set to enter parliament.

According to Gakharia for Georgia, the request for the cancellation of the lists was a populist move with no legal basis. CEC’s legal head, Giorgi Santuriani, explained that such cancellations cannot occur until the newly elected MPs’’ powers are formally recognized.

Opposition parties and the President of Georgia have claimed that the election was fraudulent, demanding new elections under international supervision. In contrast, the ruling party Georgian Dream remains in power, and the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia has opened an investigation into the alleged fraud.