GDDG Names Majoritarian MP Candidates in Kakheti Region

Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia (GDDG) ruling party nominated its majoritarian MP candidates for Kakheti region’s six single-mandate constituencies on August 5.
 
In a single-mandate district uniting Telavi, and parts of Lagodekhi and Kvareli municipalities, the ruling party named chairman of the defense and security committee in the outgoing parliament, MP Irakli Sesiashvili, as its majoritarian MP candidate.

United National Movement (UMN) opposition party nominated a former deputy governor of Kakheti region, Giorgi Botkoveli, as its majoritarian candidate in the same district of Telavi; he was running for Telavi municipality head (gamgebeli) in 2014 local elections, but lost the race to Georgian Dream’s candidate.

In the same district, Free Democrats (FD) opposition party nominated its member of local council (Sakrebulo) in Telavi, Dimitri Zakaidze, as its majoritarian MP candidate. At least one independent candidate has so far also been nominated in the same single-mandate constituency.
 
In Gurjaani, GDDG named Davit Songulashvili, a co-owner of Address, a firm which runs a retail clothing chain in Tbilisi.

His competitor from UNM opposition party is Giorgi Gviniashvili, who seeks re-election as a majoritarian MP from Gurjaani single-mandate constituency.

Free Democrats opposition party named a member of the local council (Sakrebulo) in Gurjaani, Simon Kochorashvili, in the same district and Republican Party, GDDG’s former partner in coalition government, has nominated deputy chairman of local council in Gurjaani, Zviad Kviralashvili, as its majoritarian candidate in Gurjaani.

In Sagarejo, GDDG nominated as its majoritarian MP candidate Roman Muchiashvili, director and co-owner of Best Product, a firm distributing in Tbilisi chicken eggs produced in one of poultry farms in Sagarejo municipality.

UNM’s Zurab Tchiaberashvili, who was Georgia’s ambassador to Switzerland in 2010-2012 and then served as healthcare minister and governor of Kakheti region under ex-President Saakashvili’s administration, runs as a majoritarian MP candidate in Sagarejo.

An election bloc led by Alliance of Patriots of Georgia named one of its leaders, Irma Inashvili, as its majoritarian candidate in Sagarejo; Inashvili was running in Sagarejo MP by-election in October 2015, but she was narrowly defeated by GD candidate from the Republican Party.

In a single-mandate district uniting Lagodekhi and parts of Kvareli municipality, GDDG nominated as its majoritarian MP candidate Guram Macharashvili, who is now deputy governor of Shida Kartli region; he worked as a lawyer at ex-PM Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Cartu Bank in 2001-2014.

UNM nominated in the same district head of its local branch in Lagodekhi Guram Kakalashvili as its candidate majoritarian MP candidate.

FD’s Vakhtang Mchedlidze, who was Tbilisi City Council member from UNM party before quitting it in early 2011 and who joined FD party this year, runs in the same district uniting Lagodekhi and parts of Kvareli municipality.

Governor of the Kakheti region, Irakli Shiolashvili, is GDDG’s majoritarian MP candidate in a single-mandate district uniting Signagi and Dedoplistskaro municipalities.

His competitor from the UNM party is MP Levan Bezhashvili, who narrowly lost the race in the same district to the Georgian Dream’s candidate in 2012 elections; he, however, became an MP through UNM’s party list in 2012 elections.
 
An MP from GDDG Gela Samkharauli will run as a majoritarian MP candidate in Akhmeta, where his competitor from FD opposition party will be Otar Kvirikashvili, who quit Georgian Dream in 2014. Head of UNM’s local branch in Akhmeta, Shakro Terterashvili, is running in the same district.

Apart of Kakheti, the ruling party has so far nominated its majoritarian MP candidates in Imereti, Samegrelo, Guria, Shida Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, and Kvemo Kartli regions.

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.