Eight Opposition Parties Don't Recognise Local Elections as Legitimate, Refuse to Participate
By Malkhaz Matsaberidze
Friday, July 11, 2025
Boycott or participate in local elections? This question has fractured Georgia's pro-Western opposition forces. Eight opposition parties have announced they will not take part in the local self-government elections scheduled for October 4. Giorgi Gakharia's party For Georgia and Lelo have announced they will participate in the upcoming Georgian Dream-scheduled local elections.
Opposition parties have until August 8 to give a formal response, though expectations from both the public and political actors have been mounting for weeks.
Events unfolded in an unexpected way. On June 27, Elene Khoshtaria, leader of the opposition party Droa, began a hunger strike in front of the Parliament building. She was soon joined by another member of the Coalition for Change, Gedevan Popkhadze, as well as several activists. When asked by a journalist on June 28 whether she would end her hunger strike if all opposition parties declared a boycott, Khoshtaria answered simply: "Yes." The hunger strike ended on June 30. Shortly after, eight opposition parties officially announced their boycott of the local elections. These parties are: Freedom Square, Droa, Girchi - More Freedom, United National Movement, Strategy Builder, European Georgia, Akhali, and Federalists. Among them are two political forces that surpassed the 5% threshold in the 2024 parliamentary elections, according to official results.
In their joint statement, the parties declared: "We, the pro-European political forces of Georgia whose goal is to dismantle Ivanishvili's Russian regime, protect the country's independence, and ensure its integration with the West, refuse to participate in the local elections, as doing so would only lend a façade of legitimacy to an illegal regime." According to the statement, "The path to victory lies in complete non-cooperation with the regime."
This position was not new for these eight parties - they had previously indicated their intention to boycott and have now formalized it jointly.
In contrast, For Georgia, the party founded by Giorgi Gakharia, plans to participate. Gakharia himself remains abroad and is unlikely to return, as he reportedly faces a lengthy prison sentence. Lelo also appears to lean toward participating, though it has not issued a final decision. Its leaders, Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri Japaridze, are currently detained for failing to appear before Tsulukiani's parliamentary commission.Those in favor of a boycott put forward the following points:
The opposition refused to enter the 2024 parliament due to election fraud - so why should it legitimize Georgian Dream's authority by participating now?
The electoral environment has deteriorated even further since 2024, and participation would mean playing a game that's already rigged.
The country is experiencing repression: opposition leaders and protesters have been arrested. Elections under such conditions are illegitimate.
Those who favor participation argue that: 1. Boycotts typically weaken opposition movements and benefit authoritarian regimes; international experience shows they rarely produce positive outcomes. 2. Elections offer a platform to expose the regime's abuses and maintain political presence. A united opposition could win control of major cities from the Georgian Dream. 4. There is currently no non-electoral path to power.
Since unity was seen as a prerequisite for any meaningful success, it is now clear that the opposition factions choosing to participate are unlikely to achieve significant results. At best, they may gain a few municipal seats - but given the limited power of local self-government, this will not pose any real threat to the ruling party.
While party positions are now known, the sentiment of the opposition electorate - who must ultimately be convinced to either vote or abstain - is just as critical. According to a survey by the Institute for Social Studies and Analysis (ISSA), which concluded on June 30, 47.4% of Tbilisi residents support a boycott of the local elections. Of those, 29.3% say parties should categorically refuse to participate, while 18.1% believe participation is acceptable only if early parliamentary elections are held before or alongside the vote.
Nationally, 21.8% of respondents think the opposition should unconditionally boycott the local elections. Another 16.3% say participation should only happen if early parliamentary elections are called. Meanwhile, 45.5% believe the opposition should participate regardless of whether snap elections take place. Among supporters of pro-European opposition parties, 43.3% favor an unconditional boycott, while 26.2% support participation only if early elections are held. Among Georgian Dream/People's Power supporters, 70.4% believe the opposition should take part in the municipal elections without any conditions.
The numbers show that a significant portion of the pro-opposition electorate is leaning toward a boycott. Meanwhile, Georgian Dream officials have stated that the October 4 elections will proceed undisturbed, with or without these parties, and will feature participation from "other political forces." Still, autumn is far away - and in Georgia, political developments often unfold quickly and unpredictably.