GDDG Replaces Majoritarian MP Candidate in Khobi

Ruling party, Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia (GDDG), has replaced its majoritarian MP candidate in Samegrelo region’s Khobi single-mandate district, MP Goderdzi Bukia, with Irakli Beraia.

Bukia withdrew from the race less than a month after he was named by GDDG as its candidate. Bukia is a majoritarian MP from Khobi in the outgoing parliament; he was elected in 2012 elections as a member of UNM party, which he quit after the latter was defeated in polls four years ago.

PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili, who chairs GDDG party, said on Sunday that Bukia plans to pursue business activities and has number of investment projects with possible involvement of the state investment fund, Partnership Fund; he said that Bukia decided not to run for re-election in the Parliament in order to avoid any possible conflict of interests.

GDDG’s new candidate in Khobi, Irakli Beraia, has been part of a management team in ex-PM Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Cartu Bank for past decade. Most recently he served as director of centralized administration department at Cartu Bank. GDDG’s two other majoritarian MP candidates, whose previous tenures were related to Cartu Bank, are Guram Macharashvili, who is running in Kakheti’s Lagodekhi district and Grigol Liluashvili, who is running in Imereti region’s Vani and Khoni single-mandate district.

Head of UNM opposition party’s local branch in Khobi, Mamuka Chokhonelidze and two independent candidates are also running in the Khobi single-mandate constituency.

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.