PM Kobakhidze elected as Georgian Dream ruling party chairman

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has been appointed as the new chairman of Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party. His candidacy was nominated by the party's political council and was formally approved during the party congress held at the Paragraph Hotel on Wednesday. 

The congress also saw the presentation of the updated composition of the Georgian Dream political council, reinforcing the party’s leadership structure.

Kobakhidze’s appointment follows the resignation of Irakli Garibashvili, a two-time former PM, who announced his departure from the party and politics on April 25. 

Kobakhidze began his political career in 2012, assisting Bidzina Ivanishvili in founding the Georgian Dream party. In 2015, he became the party's executive secretary and was elected to parliament in 2016. That same year, he was appointed Speaker of Parliament, a role he held until 2019, when he resigned following mass protests over a Russian lawmaker's appearance in the Georgian legislature.

Kobakhidze returned to prominence in 2021 as chairman of Georgian Dream. In February 2024, he was appointed Prime Minister.