International legitimacy of local elections 'no longer exists', opposition leader

Levan Tsutskiridze, leader of the opposition movement Freedom Square, has dismissed claims that international partners support Georgia’s upcoming municipal elections, arguing that the vote lacks international legitimacy under the current government.

“This myth that our European and other partners asked us to participate in local elections no longer exists,” Tsutskiridze said. “It has remained a myth. Everyone has seen that this is not true because it is very clear from Brussels, Paris, London and Berlin that there will be no more real elections in this country as long as the Georgian Dream continues to do what they are doing.”

His remarks follow the adoption of a new resolution by the European Parliament, which cast doubt on the credibility of Georgia’s democratic processes. The resolution included a note stating that the arrest of key opposition figures undermined the conditions necessary for the upcoming municipal elections to be considered free and fair.

The ruling Georgian Dream party has rejected repeated accusations from domestic and international critics that it was backsliding on democratic norms. The government maintained that elections would be conducted in line with international standards and that recent arrests were unrelated to political activity.