International

Georgia's upcoming presidential election amid political unrest

Georgia will hold a presidential election on December 14, a process intended to strengthen the ruling party’s control, Georgian Dream, AFP reported on Tuesday.

The election takes place amid political turmoil in the small former Soviet republic in the Caucasus, where Georgian Dream – in power since 2012 and criticized by its opponents for a pro-Russian authoritarian drift – won the October parliamentary elections. However, the opposition rejected the result.

The legitimacy of the new parliament has been challenged since its first session on Monday, by both protesters and pro-Western President Salome Zurabishvili, who petitioned the Constitutional Court to annul the election results.

Nevertheless, on Tuesday, Georgian lawmakers convened to approve the date for the next presidential elections.

For the first time, the future president will be chosen by an electoral college rather than by popular vote, following a constitutional amendment passed by Georgian Dream in 2017. The Georgian Parliament has indicated that the future leader's inauguration will occur on December 29.

Translation by Iurie Tataru

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