President Funds Summer Schools for Get Out the Vote Campaign

President Giorgi Margvelashvili has launched a campaign, which he said, aims at encouraging people, especially young voters, to turn out at polling stations in the October 8 parliamentary elections.

The program, funded from the presidential discretionary reserve fund, involves summer schools in the regions mostly for high school seniors, who, after a one-week course, will carry out get out the vote campaigns in their respective regions.

Margvelashvili has said for multiple times previously and reiterated it again, that he will not campaign for any of the political party, but instead focus on increasing voter turnout. Georgia has no minimum turnout threshold for elections to be valid.
 
“You will campaign not for a political party or a political leader, but to ask citizens to go to polling stations on October 8,” the President said when addressing participants of one of the summer schools close to Dusheti in Mtskheta-Mtianeti region on August 10.

“You should convince every citizen that casting ballot in elections is their sacred obligation. There are many people who are confused and who have not yet made their mind about which political leader to choose,” he said.
 
“You will be asked why they should vote… There is one answer – if you are not going to elections you are saying no to freedom,” he said. “You should go and visit people in towns and villages to convince them to vote, you should call on them to listen to politicians and their promises – [and decide] how real their promises are.”
 
“I believe that you will be able to unite Georgia around the goal to elect a qualified government, which will listen to the people and will be completely in service of people’s interests,” President Margvelashvili said.