Presidential elections with the electoral college began in Georgia

In Georgia at 9:00 (8:00 Moscow time) began a meeting of the electoral college of 300 deputies of different levels, which will elect the sixth president of the republic. This was reported by the First Channel of Georgia on December 14.

Election of the president not by citizens but by a special assembly is held in the country for the first time in history. Only one candidate is being considered - ex-member of parliament and former soccer player Mikhail Kavelashvili, nominated by the ruling Georgian Dream party. The 300-member panel includes 211 representatives of this political force.

For the election to take place, a majority of the collegium's 151 members must be present. To elect the president, his candidacy must garner 200 votes.

The session will last until 14:00 (13:00 Moscow time), immediately after the end of voting the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia will summarize the voting results.

Mtavari TV channel reported that a youth rally against Kavelashvili's nomination and the ruling party's decision to postpone the start of accession talks with the European Union (EU) until 2028 had begun in Tbilisi. Demonstrators gathered outside the Philharmonic Hall on Melikishvili Avenue and marched towards the parliament located on Rustaveli Avenue. This is the 17th consecutive day of protests in the Georgian capital.

Izvestia correspondent Alexei Poltoranin reported that police were on duty on Freedom Square near the parliament, blocked Rustaveli Avenue and prepared water cannons. Opposition supporters came close to the legislative building and its entrances. Police officers surrounded the building like a living wall. Some demonstrators took Georgian and European Union (EU) flags with them.

Presidential campaign: EU interferes in Georgia's affairs on the eve of elections

Will Western pressure affect Zurabishvili's fate and Tbilisi's foreign policy course?

The day before, on December 13, incumbent Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili said she would not leave the presidential palace after December 29, when her term of office expires. On the same day in the evening, opposition supporters again gathered outside the Georgian parliament, and the police also arrived at the building.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin noted on December 9 that the policy of Georgia's leadership, which seeks to protect the republic's national interests, causes "heartburn" in the United States and EU countries. The deputy minister is sure that Western attacks on Georgia will continue and new sanctions will be imposed on Tbilisi.

There are protests in Georgia because of the suspension of negotiations on European integration and the opposition's disagreement with the results of the parliamentary elections. Protesters tried to set fire to the building of the Georgian Parliament and damaged dozens of offices, and law enforcement agencies had to use tear gas.

Prior to that, on December 30, Zurabishvili said she would not relinquish her powers and called the new parliament illegitimate. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze responded by emphasizing that the president would have to leave office on December 29 because the law requires it.