Georgia’s president faces Dec. 29 deadline as tensions boil over amid protests

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced on Sunday that President Salome Zourabichvili must step down by Dec. 29, as anti-government protests continue across the South Caucasus nation.

“President Zourabichvili will have to leave office on Dec. 29. Let’s see where she continues her life—behind bars or outside. I believe she has enough sense to avoid violating the Criminal Code,” Kobakhidze said during a press briefing in the capital, Tbilisi, as reported by public broadcaster 1TV.

Kobakhidze’s comments come a day after Zourabichvili renewed her calls for new elections and expressed willingness to discuss the matter with Bidzina Ivanishvili, the honorary chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party.

On Dec. 29, former footballer Mikheil Kavelashvili is set to be inaugurated as Georgia’s sixth president. Kavelashvili, 53, was the only candidate on the ballot and won a Dec. 14 vote by a 300-seat electoral college, which replaced direct presidential elections in 2017.

The vote has been overshadowed by ongoing political tensions linked to a disputed October election, in which Georgian Dream secured 89 seats in the 150-seat parliament after winning 53.93% of the vote.

Zourabichvili, who was elected in 2018 and is considered pro-EU, refused to recognize the election results, alleging Russian interference. Opposition parties also rejected the results, claiming the vote was “stolen,” and have since boycotted parliamentary sessions.

On Nov. 28, Kobakhidze announced that Georgia would suspend EU accession talks until 2028, a decision that has sparked widespread protests across the country, including in Tbilisi.