By Natalia Konarzewska

December 16, 2019, the CACI Analyst

Before the dust from the June anti-government demonstrations had time to settle, Georgia saw a new round of protests in November. This time, Georgians took the streets after the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party declined to reform the electoral system despite earlier promises. A majority of Georgians support switching from a mixed to a fully proportional electoral system before the 2020 parliamentary elections, since this will break the ruling party’s electoral domination and ensure a fairer parliamentary representation for small parties. GD proposed electoral reform in June to meet opposition demands, however, in November the ruling party surprisingly backed away from the idea after failing to collect the essential number of votes among its deputies to pass the constitutional amendment.

By Natalia Konarzewska

September 16, 2019, the CACI Analyst

One year ahead of the 2020 parliamentary elections, Georgia is experiencing a serious political crisis that has exposed deep flaws in the rule of Georgian Dream (GD) and its illusive reconciliation with Russia. The visit of a Russian lawmaker to Georgia’s Parliament in June sparked outrage across the country and fueled widespread disappointment with the ruling party’s policies. The parliamentary scandal delivered a serious blow to the government’s approval ratings and its hallmark policy of rapprochement with Russia. This is a worrying trend for the ruling party, which is seeking a third consecutive term but increasingly compromises democratic principles in order to stay in power.

By Svante E. Cornell

July 30, 2019, the CACI Analyst

Azerbaijan and Georgia have enjoyed almost three decades of a strategic partnership that has shaped the geopolitical landscape of the whole greater Eurasia. Yet Azerbaijani-Georgian relations `have recently witnessed an unparalleled level of tensions. Ostensibly about a border demarcation issue, the slump in the relationship nevertheless derives in part from the effort of foreign powers to separate the two partners from each – willfully in the case of Russia, and inadvertently in the case of the West. It is time for both countries and their partners to pay attention to this crucial relationship.

By Casper Wuite

May 28, 2019, the CACI Analyst

Only six months after a closely fought presidential election, Georgia’s political forces are repositioning themselves for the 2020 parliamentary elections. With Georgian Dream’s popularity waning – the party won landslides in previous votes – the party may need support from conservative and ultra-nationalist political parties in order to form a majority government after 2020. The international community, concerned about the rise of pro-Russian and nationalist sentiment, will keenly watch the 2020 elections to see in which direction the country, and its process of democratization and Euro-Atlantic and European Integration, is heading.

By Neil Hauer

March 13, 2019, the CACI Analyst

Georgia’s final presidential elections in October and November 2018 served as a microcosm of the current uninspired state of Georgian politics. Although the incumbent Georgian Dream (GD) party and its leader, Bidzina Ivanishvili, were able to triumph over their opponents, the trials they faced in doing so underscored the degree to which they have lost public confidence. Exiled former president Mikheil Saakashvili, who played a major role in campaigning for the candidate of his United National Movement (UNM) party, also appears to be a largely spent force. Georgia seems to be in need of a new political movement that can mobilize enthusiasm, but it is unclear when, or from where, this will emerge.