Georgia: second round of municipal elections promises to be very tight
Supporters of the ruling Georgian Dream Party cheer and cheer as Tbilisi's mayor and former footballer Kakha Kaladze speak on stage at a rally in downtown Tbilisi ahead of local elections on October 27, 2021. AFP - VANO SHLAMOV
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
The Georgian opposition hopes to win this Saturday in several of the country's major cities, including the capital on the occasion of the second round of municipal elections.
A vote that is played out in a climate of tension, because the main opposition leader continues to observe a hunger strike in the prison near Tbilisi where he is imprisoned.
Returning to his country after eight years of exile, former President Mikheïl Saakachvili therefore asked his supporters to mobilize en masse for this second round.
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Incarcerated since his return earlier this month, Mikheïl Saakachvili considers himself a political prisoner.
And his supporters compare him to the Russian opponent Alexeï Navalny who also returned to his country when they risked being arrested.
Khatia Dekanoidze, opposition candidate in Koutaïsi, the third largest city in the country: “
I am worried because he is in prison, his rights are violated and his hunger strike has lasted for 29 days!
But I hope that people will come to vote for us and I think that victory will play a role so that he can regain his freedom
”.
Still popular with his supporters, Mikheïl Saakachivili also has a large number of detractors in Georgia and he remains widely criticized for the war lost in 2008 against Russia, and for his personal practice of power.
Giorgi Khelashvili, MP for Georgian Dream, the ruling party in Tbilisi: “
Of course coming back to Georgia he galvanized his supporters, but at the same time he brought back all the negative things that people remember.
Finally his return mobilized our supporters, even more than his!
His plan was to encourage violence and chaos, but it totally failed
”.
After the first round of municipal elections, the ruling party claimed victory by winning 47% of the vote.
But the second round which will be held this Saturday promises to be very tight.
And the opposition hopes to win in a large number of cities, including Tbillisi the capital.
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Georgia
Mikheil Saakashvili