The Daily Beat: 25 November

Right before the first session of the parliament, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced a government reshuffle, nominating three new candidates for ministerial positions. Maka Bochorishvili is set to become the foreign minister, replacing Ilia Darchaiashvili, while Anri Okhanashvili has been nominated for the position of Justice Minister, substituting Rati Bregadze. At the same time, Davit Songhulashvili has been nominated to lead the Ministry of Environment and Agriculture.

The ruling Georgian Dream party has convened the first parliament session and recognized the credentials of all 150 MPs despite the concerns over the legitimacy of the October parliamentary elections. President Salome Zurabishvili, who does not recognize the elections, refused to convene the first session. She also challenged the election results in the Constitutional Court. However, the GD majority decided to hold the first session anyway.

At the first session of parliament on November 25, which was attended and recognized only by Georgian Dream members, MPs elected the Speaker, Deputy Speakers, and Committee Chairpersons. Many faces from the previous Parliament retained their posts, including Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, who was the Speaker in the 10th convocation of Parliament from 2021. Meanwhile, citizens protested against the first session of parliament outside the building under heavy police presence.

Last night, President Salome Zurabishvili declared the parliament’s first session unconstitutional, citing three reasons: massive electoral fraud undermining its legitimacy, her refusal to convene the session, and the pending appeal before the Constitutional Court. She posted all of this on social media platform X.

In a video address to the public on November 25, President Salome Zurabishvili stated that “the Georgian parliament no longer exists” because “it has torn up the Constitution,” describing the day as “Black Monday.” She also expressed confidence in Georgian youth, further stressing that “the country should prepare for free and fair elections that will take place “soon.”

The British Embassy in Georgia has issued a statement saying it notes the convening of the Georgian Parliament today. “We continue to have serious concerns about election violations, which have not yet been investigated in a thorough or independent fashion,” the Embassy statement reads. It also calls on the Georgian government to implement the recommendations of the ODIHR Observation Mission “once its final report is issued.”

The leaders of the Coalition for Change announced they are appealing to the Central Election Commission to revoke the Coalition’s party lists. According to one of the leaders, Zurab Japaridze, procedurally, the opposition should first revoke the proportional lists and then individually write a letter revoking their parliamentary mandates. The Coalition for Change, uniting Ahali, Girchi – More Freedom, and Droa garnered the most votes – 11.03%, among the four opposition political forces.

The ruling majority leader, Mamuka Mdinaradze, claims that Bidzina Ivanishvili, Irakli Garibashvili, and Irakli Kobakhidze most probably will not continue as lawmakers in parliament. “They hold leadership positions within the party—namely, the Honorary Chairman, the Chair, and the Political Secretary. Their inclusion on the party list was formally based on these roles, and they will renounce their parliamentary mandates,” Mdinaradze told journalists. He also said that the next Presidential candidate is 99% agreed upon by the party leaders.

On November 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a federal law ratifying a so-called agreement between the Russian Federation and the occupied Tskhinvali region on the development of military-technical cooperation. The so-called agreement outlines procedures for the supply of military products, under which both parties agree to deliver equipment with the same characteristics and configuration used by their respective armed forces, other military formations, law enforcement agencies, and special services.