GDDG Names Majoritarian MP Candidates in Imereti Region

Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia (GDDG) ruling party marked official launch of its election campaign with an outdoor rally in Georgia’s second-largest city of Kutaisi on July 18, where it named its majoritarian MP candidates for Imereti region’s eleven single-mandate constituencies.

Among the candidates are two incumbent lawmakers, as well as former interior minister Koba Narchemashvili, who will run in one of Kutaisi’s three single-mandate constituencies.

Narchemashvili served as the Interior Minister for two years during Eduard Shevardnadze’s presidency before the Rose Revolution in 2003.

GDDG nominated principal of Kutaisi’s public school No.41, Genadi Margvelashvili, and a doctor Dimitri Mkheidze, director of Kutaisi-based ENT clinic, as its majoritarian candidates in Kutaisi’s two other single-mandate constituencies.

Georgia has a mixed electoral system in which 73 lawmakers are elected in 73 single-member constituencies, known in Georgia as “majoritarian” mandates (a candidate has to win over 50% of votes in order to be an outright winner otherwise a second round should be held), and rest 77 seats are allocated proportionally under the party-list contest among political parties, which clear 5% threshold in nationwide popular vote.

Single-mandate constituencies have been redistricted to provide equal suffrage. Discrepancy between the size of constituencies by number of votes has been significantly narrowed through merging of small districts and splitting of large ones. As a result of redistricting, boundaries of single-mandate constituencies in most cases no longer coincide with those of municipal divisions.

GDDG nominated incumbent lawmaker Shalva Kiknavelidze as its majoritarian MP candidate in Zestaponi. MP Kiknavelidze was in the National Forum party before quitting it in June and switching to GDDG.

MP Paata Kvizhinadze was nominated as a majoritarian MP candidate in Sachkhere; he is a member of the Conservative Party, part of the GD ruling coalition. Currently vice speaker of parliament from GDDG, Manana Kobakhidze, is an incumbent MP from Sachkhere single-mandate constituency.

Grigol Liluashvili, who up until now was deputy mayor of Tbilisi, has been nominated by GDDG as its majoritarian MP candidate in a constituency covering Vani and Khoni municipalities. Before becoming deputy mayor of Tbilisi in January 2016, Liluashvili served as chairman of the supervisory board of ex-PM Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Cartu Bank.

Head (gamgebeli) of the Chiatura municipality, Sulkhan Makhatadze, has been nominated as GDDG’s majoritarian candidate in Chiatura single-mandate constituency, and gamgebeli of Kharagauli municipality, Koba Lursmanashvili, will run in the constituency covering Kharagauli and Bagdati municipalities.

Businessman Gia Mikeladze has been named as GDDG’s majoritarian MP candidate in Samtredia.

Elguja Gotsiridze, head of Chachava Maternity Hospital in Tbilisi, will run in a constituency uniting Terjola and Tkibuli municipalities.

Tsotne Zurabiani, who is now working for the Imereti governor’s office, will run in Tskaltubo.