Ex-Man City player Kavelashvili elected as new Georgia President
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Tbilisi: Mikheil Kavelashvili, the candidate from the ruling Georgian Dream party, has been elected as the new President of Georgia, according to the Central Election Commission. Kavelashvili secured 224 votes from the 300-member electoral college, surpassing the 200 votes required for victory.
This presidential election, held on Saturday, marks a historic shift as it is the first time in Georgia’s history that the president has been elected through an electoral college rather than by a direct public vote. The election results were announced following a parliamentary session in which Georgia’s newly elected lawmakers were confirmed after securing an 89-seat majority in the 150-seat Parliament in last month’s elections. The Georgian Dream party received 53.93% of the vote.
The inauguration of the newly elected President Kavelashvili is set to take place on December 29.
The election took place amidst ongoing protests in Tbilisi, where opposition parties and incumbent President Salome Zourabichvili have raised concerns about the legitimacy of the parliamentary election results. Zourabichvili, who has served as president since 2018, stated that she did not recognize the results, alleging Russian interference. Opposition parties have also referred to the election as "stolen."
Prior to his political career, Kavelashvili had a brief stint as a professional footballer, playing as a striker for Manchester City during the 1995-96 Premier League season.
Kavelashvili’s election marks a significant change in Georgia’s political landscape as the country moves away from a direct popular vote system for presidential elections. The 300-member electoral college includes both Parliament members and regional delegates.
President Zourabichvili’s term is set to expire on December 16, and discussions over Georgia’s future EU membership and budgetary grants have recently been suspended by the Georgian government under Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze.
With IANS inputs