Political parties do not have much to tell their voters

Lana Giorgidze

Neither parliamentary majority nor parliamentary minority have nominated presidential candidates for 2018 elections. The parties follow the terms regulated by the law and will conceivably nominate their candidates by the end of July.

The Presidential Elections is scheduled in October, 2018. At this stage, only two opposition political parties Girchi and Democratic Movement has nominated their candidates. Leader of the political party Zurab Japaridze saud ge will participate in the 2018 Presidential Elections.

Japaridze said if he is elected, he will double the budget of the state defense for the next 5 years, will annul compulsory military service and will pardon the people, who were convicted for drug-related crimes. At the same time, he will veto all laws, which “restricts freedom” and will present the reports of the ministers to the society via Facebook Live once a month.

Leader of the Democratic Movement Nino Burjanadze said in her interview with Palitranews that not a single presidential candidates will be better than her. 

Burjanadze said that a candidate can be better than she is if she/he has more experience, competence and better contacts. “I doubt any candidate will be better than me. I am sorry for my arrogant statements but if better candidate appears, who will be better than Nino Burjanadze in at least one criteria, I promise from your program that I will not take part in the elections and even more, I will support him/her,” Nino Burjanadze said.

Reportedly, the Georgian Dream will nominate Sozar Sobari. This allegation may be justified with the fact that Sozar Subari is not in the new cabinet of ministers. The voters will learn whether Sozar Subari will be presidential candidate of the GD in the end of July.

Why political parties do not nominate their candidates before the deadline estimated by the law – humanrights.ge asked expert Archil Gamzardia.

He said it is not beneficial policy as after nominating the candidates the political parties will start recruiting of people, work with target groups, organize election campaigns, etc. However, it happens in developed states where political groups work with qualification.

“Neither party has self-confidence. Opposition parties are less oriented on victory; the government is already convinced in its victory because of clear reasons and factors. Thus, they try to have some political agenda and follow it. They do not think about main goal of the elections – victory. As for their agenda, it may be discreditation of the opponent. In general, another crisis, which results into the delayed nomination of candidates is that political parties have nothing to tell their voters. Principle of the presidential elections is more conditional as he/she is senior political person, but the voters are more concerned about the execution mechanism. Consequently, presidential elections is a bit unfamiliar process for political parties. Also, as they do not have much to tell the voters and voters are not ready for elections either, they are not properly aware of the presidential campaign and political parties “collaborate” to lead the procedures to the finish. There are no more in-depth analysis of these elections,” expert Archil Gamzardia said. 

Before presidential elections, the European Georgia and United National Movement agreed on three main points. 

A leader of the European Georgia Gigi Ugulava said that in the second round of the presidential elections they will support each other’s’ candidates. 

“In Brussels, together with the President of the European People’s Party (EPP) Joseph Daul, we signed agreement on three main points with the UNM: we will support each other’s candidates in the second round of the presidential elections (whoever passes it); during the campaign we will refrain from attacking and criticizing each other; in the first and second rounds of elections we will mobilize voters as elections is the way to change the government,” Gigi Ugulava wrote in social network.

“Pre-election agreement between the European Georgia and UNM is important for the future, for the empowerment of opposition” – said MP Sergo Ratiani from the parliamentary minority.

As the MP told Channel 1, the agreement is important for the voters who oppose the government in order not to harm the opposition parties before the elections and the parties managed to cooperate in the second round. 

Chairperson of the parliamentary fraction Georgian Dream Mamuka Mdinaradze reacted the agreement between the European Georgia and UNM. He said, the UNM has already headed down its political carrier. He said the EG might not realize it. Actually, it is not strange as they, in reality, ideologically and politically have always been on one side, and once again disclosed and legalized it,” Mamuka Mdinaradze said.

In accordance to the Organic Law of Georgia on Elections, in order to nominate a candidate for President of Georgia, a party and an initiative group of voters shall file an application to the CEC Chairperson no later than the 50th day before the polling day. After the filing of an application, the party and the initiative group of voters shall have the right to collect signatures of supporting voters. Considering that, the political parties will nominate their presidential candidates in the end of July.