Margvelashvili won’t Seek Second Term
President Giorgi Margvelashvili announced today that he would not seek the second term in office during the October 28 presidential elections. The announcement was widely expected. Margvelashvili said he intends to serve his homeland “in a different form.”
Speaking at a meeting with students and academia on August 31, Margvelashvili stressed the importance of the upcoming presidential elections and noted that it was up to Georgian citizens to decide the fate of Georgia.
“With active involvement of the Georgian citizens, we should ensure that our country is free and stands firmly in its resolve to serve its own citizens,” President Margvelashvili said.
He also touched upon the criteria that the future President should meet. Margvelashvili said that the new President should serve Georgian citizens rather than any ruling party, and should also strive to unite the nation.
“The President should spare no efforts to unite the nation around the key values and to ensure that the diversity and peculiarity of our country and nation are not lost,” he noted.
Giorgi Margvelashvili was elected as the fourth President of Georgia in October 2013. He ran in the elections on Georgian Dream’s ticket. But shortly after the elections Margvelashvili lost the ruling party’s support due to differences on a number of issues and became frequent target of their criticism.
According to the new constitution, which will enter into force following the presidential elections, the new President will be elected by the 300-member Electoral College for a term of five years.
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