TBILISI: Georgia’s ruling party on Saturday voted for a far-right former footballer to become president in a controversial election process, amid a deepening constitutional crisis and weeks of mass pro-EU protests.

The Black Sea nation has been in turmoil since the governing Georgian Dream party claimed victory in contested October parliamentary elections and then announced it would delay European Union membership talks for four years.

An electoral college, controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream party and boycotted by the opposition, elected Mikheil Kavelashvili with a comfortable majority of 224 votes as the country’s next figurehead leader for a five-year term, the central election commission said.

Kavelashvili is a 53-year-old former forward for English Premier League champions Manchester City. An MP since 2016, he is known for airing far-right views in obscenity-laced statements.

Opposition denounces result as ‘illegitimate’, insisting sitting president remains the country’s sole legitimate leader

“Over the years, certain forces — particularly external ones — have exploited the presidential institution to divide society,” Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, told journalists.

“Under Mikheil Kavelashvili’s presidency, it will regain its constitutional mission and dignity.” The opposition denounced Saturday’s election as “illegitimate” and said the sitting president, Salome Zurabishvili, remains the country’s sole legitimate leader.

Pro-Western Zurabishvili — at loggerheads with Georgian Dream — has refused to step down and is demanding new parliamentary elections, paving the way for a constitutional showdown.

A former diplomat, Zurabishvili — a hugely popular figure among protesters, who view her as a beacon of Georgia’s European aspirations — said Saturday’s vote made “a mockery of democracy”.

On Saturday evening, Zurabishvili received applause from thousands of protesters as she appeared at a rally outside parliament.

“I am with you, and you are in my heart,” she told the cheering crowd as demonstrators shouted: “Long live the president of Georgia!” “To achieve peace and justice, new elections are essential. That is why we are here — calmly, quietly, and without turmoil,” Zurabishvili added.

The city authorities had announced they would switch on lights on a large Christmas tree outside the parliament on Saturday evening but the Tbilisi mayor later said he was postponing this due to the actions of the “radical opposition”.

Opposition groups accuse Georgian Dream of rigging the Oct 26 parliamentary vote, backsliding on democracy and moving Tbilisi closer to Russia — despite the Caucasus nation’s constitutionally mandated bid to join the European Union.

Kavelashvili — the sole candidate for the largely ceremonial presidential post — is known for vehemently anti-Western diatribes and opposition to LGBTQ rights. Georgian Dream scrapped direct presidential elections in 2017.

Published in Dawn, December 15th, 2024