Constitutional Court to Hear Case Seeking Ban on Five Opposition Parties
By Messenger Staff
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Georgia's Constitutional Court will hold substantive hearings on October 21, 22 and 23 in a lawsuit seeking to declare five opposition parties unconstitutional and ban their activities. The claim was filed by 88 members of Parliament from the ruling Georgian Dream party and will be heard by the full Plenum of the Constitutional Court.
The parties targeted are Unity-National Movement, Coalition for Change (Gvaramia, Melia, Girchi, Droa), Strong Georgia (Lelo, For the People, For Freedom!), the Federalist Party and Gakharia for Georgia.
In a statement issued on October 19, the Constitutional Court outlined the plaintiffs' arguments, which allege that the five parties violated Article 23, Paragraph 3 of Georgia's Constitution by attempting to overthrow the constitutional order through violence or pursuing that objective.
The lawmakers argue that the alleged violations have taken several forms, including systematic human rights abuses by the parties or their members, attempts to overthrow or violently change the constitutional order, and refusal to recognize the legitimacy of officials and institutions elected through general elections.
The claim also raises allegations concerning Georgia's independence and territorial integrity, referring to events surrounding the August 2008 war and developments after 2012.
According to the plaintiffs, the parties have consistently questioned the domestic and international legitimacy of Georgia's government and the ruling party since 2016. They argue that the groups share unconstitutional objectives, pointing to what they describe as similar positions in elected bodies and political processes, as well as alleged acts of sabotage against the Georgian state.
The lawsuit further cites the political backgrounds of several current and former opposition leaders. According to the plaintiffs, these individuals were elected to Parliament on the nomination of the United National Movement or electoral blocs in which it participated, held positions within the party, or occupied senior political and state offices when the UNM governed Georgia from 2004 to 2012. The claim also alleges that some of these individuals participated in or assisted human rights violations during that period.
The lawmakers argue that these circumstances, considered alongside Georgia's Constitution and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, provide sufficient legal grounds to ban the parties.
They have asked the Constitutional Court to declare the activities of all five parties unconstitutional under Article 23, Paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Constitution and prohibit them from operating.
The allegations are the plaintiffs' arguments in the constitutional case. The court is scheduled to examine the claim on its merits during the October 21-23 hearings.
