Municipal elections will be held in Georgia tomorrow. Voters will elect mayors and members of consultative bodies in 64 cities and districts, including Tbilisi, for the next four years.
A total of 12 political parties (including two opposition parties) and six initiative groups have qualified to participate in the elections. In Tbilisi and 63 municipalities, 112 candidates have been registered for mayoral positions. There are 2,228 majoritarian candidates and 5,193 candidates on party lists. Additionally, 32 candidates have been nominated by initiative groups.
An interesting question arises: how many ethnic Azerbaijanis have joined the electoral race as candidates?
To find the answer, APA’s local bureau conducted research based on the final list of electoral subjects registered with Georgia’s Central Election Commission as of September 18.
Three Azerbaijani candidates are competing for Mayor
Among the candidates for mayoral positions, there are 4 Azerbaijanis; there are 78 candidates for majoritarian deputy positions and 102 on party lists. In total, 184 ethnic Azerbaijanis have been granted candidate status in the local elections. However, this is not the final figure — some have already withdrawn their candidacies.
The number of Azerbaijani candidates for majoritarian deputy positions has decreased compared to the last local elections held in 2021. Four years ago, there were 105 such candidates. The decline is primarily due to the decision of most opposition parties in Georgia to boycott the upcoming elections. In the last local elections, 68 Azerbaijani candidates ran from opposition parties.
Only four ethnic Azerbaijanis initially registered to run for mayoral positions. They are: Daur Ismayilov, the ruling Georgian Dream party’s candidate for mayor of Marneuli, Asaf Chiragov and Asad Aliyev, opposition Lelo – For a Strong Georgia party’s candidates for mayor of Bolnisi and Marneuli respectively, Ali Badirov, candidate from Our United Georgia party for Marneuli.
Currently, the number of Azerbaijani candidates competing for mayoral positions stands at three. On September 22, Asaf Chiragov withdrew his candidacy for Bolnisi mayor in favor of his rival from Georgian Dream, Zamur Chitanava.
How many Azerbaijani candidates were nominated by the Ruling and Opposition Parties?
The ruling Georgian Dream party nominated the highest number of Azerbaijani candidates for majoritarian deputy positions — 46 in total. Most of these candidates come from Marneuli (12), Gardabani (10), and Dmanisi (8) districts.
In second place is the Lelo – For a Strong Georgia party with 29 candidates. This opposition party nominated the largest number of Azerbaijani candidates in Marneuli (12) and Bolnisi (7). Currently, the number stands at 26, as Azerbaijani candidates from the villages of Qullar, Birinci Kosali, and Gyzylhajili in Marneuli district have withdrawn from the race.
The For Georgia party led by Giorgi Gakharia and Our United Georgia each nominated one Azerbaijani candidate for majoritarian deputy positions. Another Azerbaijani candidate was nominated in Tsalka district by an initiative group composed of five ethnic Azerbaijanis.
21 female Azerbaijani candidates
There are 102 Azerbaijanis on party lists. The party with the largest number of Azerbaijani candidates is Lelo – For a Strong Georgia (31 candidates). The Georgian Dream list includes 29 Azerbaijani candidates, People’s Power has 19, and Our United Georgia has 23.
Notably, 21 of the Azerbaijani candidates participating in the elections are women. Four are running for majoritarian deputy positions, while 17 are on party lists.
As of today, the number of Azerbaijani candidates for mayor stands at 3, while 75 are competing for majoritarian deputy seats and 102 are on party lists. This brings the total number of Azerbaijani candidates participating in the electoral race to 180. This figure may decrease if more candidates withdraw before election day.
Who will win?
To secure seats in municipal councils, political parties must receive at least 4% of the vote. Majoritarian candidates must receive at least 40% of the vote, provided their opponent does not win more.
To be elected mayor, a candidate must receive more than 50% of the votes cast. If no candidate receives over 50%, a second round will be held between the two leading candidates.
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