17 December, 2024
Quick Impressions from Georgia Following the Elections by Jakob Hedenskog
“Quick Impressions” is a format through which SCEEUS shares impressions from far and near: travels, events, and exchanges. This time, Jakob Hedenskog reports from a post-electoral study visit to Tbilisi, Georgia.
Photo: Jakob Hedenskog/SCEEUS
Between 9 and 13 December 2024, I joined an assessment mission to Tbilisi, organised by the McCain Institute in partnership with a Georgian think tank. The mission included former diplomats, journalists, and analysts from Europe and the United States. The purpose was to understand the situation in Georgia after the parliamentary elections on 26 October 2024. The visit came at a key moment, as mass protests had erupted following Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s 28 November announcement that the government would suspend plans to pursue EU membership until 2028.
During the visit, the mission met with representatives from opposition political parties, civil society, election observers, the media, cultural workers, and ethnic minority groups. We also met foreign diplomats and international organisations based in Georgia.
The visit was an excellent opportunity to gain first-hand impressions of the country during this sensitive period. Georgia is facing increasingly authoritarian domestic developments while also dealing with external pressure caused by Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and its growing neo-imperial ambitions in the region.
We learned that the elections were marred by widespread fraud from the ruling Georgian Dream Party. This included intimidation, threats, vote-buying, raids on civil society organisations, abuse of state resources, and even confiscation of personal IDs. As a result, opposition politicians boycotted the new parliament, which opened on 25 November. President Salome Zourabichvili, who supported the opposition, rejected the election results, calling them a “Russian special operation.” On 14 December, just one day after our visit ended, she was replaced by former professional footballer Mikheil Kavelashvili in an election controlled by Georgian Dream representatives.
Photo: Jakob Hedenskog/SCEEUS
We also heard detailed accounts of the ongoing protests. Civil society representatives and protest participants described how police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse demonstrators. Many peaceful protesters and journalists were systematically attacked, beaten, and abused—both on the streets and in detention—by law enforcement and criminal gangs.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Georgian Dream government has turned against its Western supporters. It promotes a conspiracy theory about a Western “Global War Party” allegedly trying to drag Georgia into war with Russia. At the same time, the government has received praise from Moscow for its authoritarian measures. These include repressive laws, modelled on Russian legislation, aimed at silencing civil society.
The policy of Georgian Dream is unprecedented for a country that remains, at least formally, a candidate for EU membership. EU membership has long had strong support among Georgians, and the goal of joining both the EU and NATO is enshrined in the country’s constitution.
The current situation resembles a tipping point. Western actions—or inaction—will be crucial. Sanctions, visa restrictions on Georgian officials, or halting financial support could have a major impact on Georgia’s future. Georgia may be a small country, but it is vital for the credibility of the EU’s integration process in Eastern Europe. If Georgia falls back into Russia’s orbit, it could have a potentially negative role for EU integration in Eastern Europe as a whole, including in Ukraine and Moldova. It could also impact Armenia, which has started distancing itself from Russia.