Georgian Premier Set to Retain Post as President Challenges Election Result
(Bloomberg) -- Georgia’s ruling party nominated the incumbent prime minister to retain his post as the Black Sea nation’s president and her supporters continue to challenge the results of last month’s election.
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Georgian Dream’s founder, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, backs Irakli Kobakhidze to continue as premier, party official Mamuka Mdinaradze told reporters in the capital, Tbilisi. Shalva Papuashvili is also to remain parliamentary speaker, with the party planning to confirm both positions in a new session starting Monday, he said Thursday.
Still, while Georgian Dream officially secured 89 of 150 assembly seats in the October vote, a start to legislative work may prove difficult.
President Salome Zourabichvili and a group of 30 opposition lawmakers have filed Constitutional Court motions to nullify the election results. Four opposition parties that back the pro-Europe head of state, whose position is largely ceremonial, have threatened not to take up their mandates in protest against alleged fraud and voter intimidation.
Over the past three weeks, the opposition has organized rallies across the country, demanding a new election. Protesters have pledged to hold more demonstrations after police twice dismantled camps they set up outside Tbilisi State University this week.
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