The Central Election Commission (CEC) has registered total of 45 political parties to run parliamentary elections on October 8th. Almost half of them have applied CEC for forming 7 election blocs.
In Georgia’s mixed electoral system 77 seats in 150-member Parliament are allocated proportionally under the party-list contest among the parties and election blocs, which clear 5% threshold in nationwide popular vote. Rest of the 73 MPs are elected in 73 single-member districts, known as “majoritarian” mandates; a majoritarian MP candidate has to win over 50% of votes in order to be an outright winner in the first round, otherwise a second round should be held no later than 25 days after the first round, CIvil.ge reports.
United National Movement (UNM) – an election bloc formed by the largest opposition party, which apart of UNM also includes little-known, small party European Georgia; depending on election results, running in elections in a bloc may give some privileges to a larger party in the bloc, like additional seat in CEC; UNM ran in 2014 local elections in a bloc with virtually unknown party;
Nino Burjanadze-Democratic Movement is an election bloc formed by former parliament speaker Nino Burjanadze’s United Democratic Movement party with small and little-known Democratic Movement-United Georgia party;
Paata Burchuladze-State for People is an election bloc led by opera singer Paata Burchuladze’s State for People party, which also includes: New Georgia, led by MP Giorgi Vashadze, who quit UNM party in May, 2016; New Rights Party, led by former MP Mamuka Katsitadze, and New Political Center-Girchi, led by MP Zurab Japaridze, who quit UNM party in May, 2015 (formally this latter party is not in the list of parties, which have applied for registration as a bloc to CEC);
Industrialists – Our Homeland is an election bloc formed by Industrialists party, led by MP Gogi Topadze, and Our Homeland, party which is led by Zviad Chitishvili, who has businesses in Russia and dual citizenship of Georgia and Russia; one of the pre-election promises of the Our Homeland party is distribution of Russian passports.
Alliance of Patriots of Georgia-United Opposition is a 6-party election bloc which along with Alliance of Patriots also unites Free Georgia; Traditionalists; Freedom; New Christian-Democrats, and Political Movement of Law Enforcement and Armed Forces Veterans and Patriots;
Socialist Georgia is a 2-party election bloc uniting Neutral Georgia, led by pro-Russian Valeri Kvaratskhelia, and United Communist Party. Ours-People’s Party is an election bloc formed by two small, lesser-known parties: Ours and People’s Party.
