Authors

  • Kornely Kakachia is Professor of Political Science at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Georgia, and Director of Tbilisi based think tank Georgian Institute of Politics. His current research focuses on Georgian domestic and foreign policy, security issues of the wider Black Sea area and comparative party politics. He was a recipient of IREX and OSI fellowships and was a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Black Sea Security program, (2009–2010) Harriman Institute, Columbia University (2011) and The Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. In his capacity as an expert on Georgian Domestic and Foreign policy, Kakachia has appeared on BBC, Deutsche Welle, Financial Times, Le Monde, Figaro, VOA, as well as on Georgian radio and television stations to comment on Georgia’s foreign policy, regional security and other issues.

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  • Levan Kakhishvili is a Policy Analyst at the Georgian Institute of Politics (GIP) and a doctoral fellow at the Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences (BAGSS) in Germany. Since October 2018, Mr. Kakhishvili is a DAAD scholar pursuing his doctoral research on political party competition in post-Soviet hybrid regimes. His field of expertise includes democratization, political parties, Georgia’s foreign policy with a focus on Georgian-Russian relations, and issues related to national identity, ethnic minorities and nationalism. Mr. Kakhishvili has obtained two Master’s degrees: MSc in Russian and East European Studies from the University of Oxford, St Antony’s College and MSocSc in Transformation in South Caucasus from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. During 2015-2018, as an invited lecturer, he has taught various courses related to political science at the International Black Sea University, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, and Georgian Institute of Public Affairs.

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  • Nino Samkharadze is a Junior Policy Analyst at GIP. At the same time, she is a PhD student at Tbilisi State University, Department of Political Science. She has obtained MA degree in Nationalism and Ethnicity Studies from TSU and BA degree in International Relations from International Black Sea University (IBSU). Being an invited lecturer at IBSU she delivers courses in Introduction to Political Science and Nationalism in International Relations. Nino’s research interests include nationalism, identity politics and their influence on political processes in the post-Soviet region.

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22/10/2024 Kornely Kakachia

Elections 2024: What is Georgian Dream’s Dream for Georgia?

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Authors

  • Kornely Kakachia is Professor of Political Science at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Georgia, and Director of Tbilisi based think tank Georgian Institute of Politics. His current research focuses on Georgian domestic and foreign policy, security issues of the wider Black Sea area and comparative party politics. He was a recipient of IREX and OSI fellowships and was a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Black Sea Security program, (2009–2010) Harriman Institute, Columbia University (2011) and The Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. In his capacity as an expert on Georgian Domestic and Foreign policy, Kakachia has appeared on BBC, Deutsche Welle, Financial Times, Le Monde, Figaro, VOA, as well as on Georgian radio and television stations to comment on Georgia’s foreign policy, regional security and other issues.

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  • Levan Kakhishvili is a Policy Analyst at the Georgian Institute of Politics (GIP) and a doctoral fellow at the Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences (BAGSS) in Germany. Since October 2018, Mr. Kakhishvili is a DAAD scholar pursuing his doctoral research on political party competition in post-Soviet hybrid regimes. His field of expertise includes democratization, political parties, Georgia’s foreign policy with a focus on Georgian-Russian relations, and issues related to national identity, ethnic minorities and nationalism. Mr. Kakhishvili has obtained two Master’s degrees: MSc in Russian and East European Studies from the University of Oxford, St Antony’s College and MSocSc in Transformation in South Caucasus from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. During 2015-2018, as an invited lecturer, he has taught various courses related to political science at the International Black Sea University, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, and Georgian Institute of Public Affairs.

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  • Nino Samkharadze is a Junior Policy Analyst at GIP. At the same time, she is a PhD student at Tbilisi State University, Department of Political Science. She has obtained MA degree in Nationalism and Ethnicity Studies from TSU and BA degree in International Relations from International Black Sea University (IBSU). Being an invited lecturer at IBSU she delivers courses in Introduction to Political Science and Nationalism in International Relations. Nino’s research interests include nationalism, identity politics and their influence on political processes in the post-Soviet region.

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Publish Date:
2024-10-22 18:15:01
Tags:თეგები:

The Georgian Dream (GD) party has ruled Georgia for 12 years. It is now battling to win a fourth term, an unusual scenario for the young Georgian democracy. The incumbent has shown increasing authoritarian tendencies, and its third term has been the most damaging for the country’s democratic development and Western path. During the 2024 election period, GD’s campaign has led to public discontent and anti-party mobilisation.

It has been increasingly difficult for GD to disguise its anti-Western and anti-democratic objectives despite its mask of people’s power and pro-European, pro-democracy façade. Long-existing suspicions that GD Honorary Chairman Bidzina Ivanishvili’s interests are dominant enhance these assumptions. The central figure of the party and informal rule, Ivanishvili has been known to exploit political processes to strengthen his influence and subject state interests to his own. He has a significant impact on GD’s vision for the Georgian state and on international affairs.

Ivanishvili’s party has been positioning itself as the sole defender of Georgian national interests, but with the country’s democratic backsliding in recent years, it has had to adjust its views external and domestic politics. The war in Ukraine prompted GD and Ivanishvili to spin conspiracy theories, such as about a ‘Global War Party’ seeking to harm Georgia. More recently, they enacted a Russian-style law on foreign agents and vowed to create a one-party system if they won the 26 October 2024 parliamentary elections. To better assess GD’s vision of the future of Georgia, we analysed its ‘fearful’ policies, separating tangible interests from rhetoric by dissecting key GD public speeches and statements. The results are as generally expected: ever-increasing authoritarianism if Georgian Dream wins enough seats to form a government.

Policy Memo #77 | October 2024

© Cover Photo: OC Media
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Kornely Kakachia

Kornely Kakachia is Professor of Political Science at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Georgia, and Director of Tbilisi based think tank Georgian Institute of Politics. His current research focuses on Georgian domestic and foreign policy, security issues of the wider Black Sea area and comparative party politics. He was a recipient of IREX and OSI fellowships and was a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Black Sea Security program, (2009–2010) Harriman Institute, Columbia University (2011) and The Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. In his capacity as an expert on Georgian Domestic and Foreign policy, Kakachia has appeared on BBC, Deutsche Welle, Financial Times, Le Monde, Figaro, VOA, as well as on Georgian radio and television stations to comment on Georgia’s foreign policy, regional security and other issues.