Incumbent Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili refuses to step down as Mikheil Kavelashvili’s successor is sworn in

Thousands of Georgians protested in the capital Tbilisi as a new president allied with the ruling Georgian Dream party was inaugurated.

Mikheil Kavelashvili, a former pro-footballer, was sworn in at a critical political time for the country after the government suspended its bid to join the European Union.

Georgian Dream won parliamentary elections in October, but the victory was mired in allegations of fraud that have since sparked several street protests.

Incumbent President Salome Zourabichvili refused to step down on Sunday, saying she was “the only legitimate president”.

Addressing crowds gathered outside, Zourabichvili said he would leave the presidential palace but labeled his successor illegitimate.

“This building has only been a symbol as long as a legitimate president has stood here,” she said.

A few minutes’ walk away, Kavelashvili was sworn in at a closed-door ceremony in parliament, where he was accompanied by his family. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze also attended the inauguration.

Speaking after being sworn in, Kavelashvili praised Georgian “traditions, values, national identity, sanctity of family and faith”.

“Our history clearly shows that after countless struggles to defend our homeland and traditions, peace has always been one of the main goals and values ​​for the Georgian people,” he said.

Georgia’s four main opposition groups rejected Kavelashvili and boycotted parliament.

Kavelashvili is a former deputy of the Georgian Dream party and was the only candidate for this position. Zourabichvili previously denounced his election as a travesty.

Georgian Dream has become increasingly authoritarian in recent years, passing Russian-style laws targeting the media and non-governmental groups that receive foreign funding and the LGBT community.

It has refused to join Western sanctions against Russia after its large-scale invasion of Ukraine and has called the West the “party of global war”, playing down its stated goal of joining the EU and NATO.

An overwhelming majority of Georgians support the country’s path to the EU and it is part of the constitution.

But in November, the country’s ruling party said the government would not seek EU membership talks until 2028.

The announcement sparked days of protests, and riot police used tear gas and water cannons against protesters, who retaliated by throwing fireworks and rocks.

On Saturday, protesters waving Georgian and EU flags gathered again before the inauguration, forming a human chain that stretched for kilometers.

“I’m in the streets with my whole family trying to somehow wrest this little country from the clutches of the Russian empire,” one protester told The Associated Press.

This week, the US imposed sanctions on former Georgian Prime Minister and billionaire founder of the Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili.

Georgia is a parliamentary democracy with the president as head of state and the prime minister as head of parliament.

When Zourabichvili became president in 2018, she was backed by Georgian Dream, but has since denounced their disputed election victory in late October as a “special Russian operation” and supported overnight pro-EU protests outside parliament.

Additional reporting by Nino Shonia in Tbilisi.