Gakharia for Georgia, Strong Georgia coalition fail to deal on election alliance

The political party Gakharia for Georgia announced on Thursday it was unable to reach an agreement with the Strong Georgia opposition bloc in ongoing coalition discussions ahead of the October general elections, initiated by President Salome Zourabichvili this week.

The negotiations aimed at forming an alliance have stalled, according to a statement released by the party formed by former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia.

Despite the impasse with Strong Georgia, Gakharia for Georgia claimed it remained hopeful about potential collaboration with the Lelo party, which leads the Strong Georgia coalition, in the future parliament. “The discussion started between our party and Lelo raises positive expectations regarding cooperation in the next convocation of the parliament,” the statement read.

In the same statement, the party expressed gratitude to Georgian President Zourabichvili for her role in facilitating the political process. Gakharia for Georgia acknowledged the president’s “pivotal role” in
initiating and supporting the political discussions over the past few days.

“For our political team, the national interests of the state and our citizens have always been paramount, outweighing any party or personal interests,” the party said and noted it had set aside its own political goals in favor of broader national interests, but Strong Georgia was unable to reach internal consensus.

With limited time left before key electoral decisions need to be made, Gakharia for Georgia declared it was not possible to secure an agreement with Strong Georgia at this stage.

The party reaffirmed its political objective to unseat the ruling Georgian Dream party, while ensuring the United National Movement did not return to power.