Georgia outgoing president says she will continue to struggle as successor inaugurated News
President.ge, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Georgia outgoing president says she will continue to struggle as successor inaugurated

The outgoing president of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili implied on Sunday that she will continue to struggle with the Georgian people as her succession was sworn in as she addressed people gathered near the Orbeliani Palace in the capital Tbilisi during the inauguration ceremony. Zourabichvili maintained that as she leaves the presidential palace she will be taking ‘legitimacy’ with her.

In a post on X, Zourabichvili labeled the inauguration of Mikheil Kavelashvili as de facto, describing him as “a de facto president”. Zourabichvili had warned in early December that she would not step down until a “legitimate parliament is elected.”

Mikheil Kavelashvili was elected on December 14, 2024, as the Electoral Assembly elected him with 224 votes out of 225, becoming the sixth President in history to be elected through a non-direct rule.

Constitutional expert Vakhtang Khmaladze stated that the president’s election is illegitimate since he was appointed “by a parliament that is itself illegitimate.” According to Khmaladze, members of the parliament recognized their authority when they had no right to do so since the legality of their election was still pending in the Constitutional Court.

According to Amnesty International Georgia, the Georgian Dream Party rigged the elections and unilaterally formed a parliament, stating that “the first session of which was held in gross violation of the Constitution of Georgia,” referring to the absence of the president in the session.

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze congratulated Kavelashvili’s inauguration on X stating that “this is a new chapter in Georgia’s democratic story,”. Several foreign leaders and policymakers criticized the news, including the President of Moldova Maia Sandu, and Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda.

In a post on X, US Congressman Joe Wilson stated that he would introduce the “Georgian Nightmare Non-Recongition Act,” which would recognize Salome Zourabichvili as the only legitimate leader in the country.

Georgia has been facing a wave of massive anti-government protests since November following the Prime Minister’s decision to suspend membership negotiations with the EU until 2028, facing severe criticism and sanctions by Western allies of the country.

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