According to the Georgian media outlet Imedi TV, Irakli Kobakhidze, the chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream party, will replace Irakli Garibashvili as the prime minister of Georgia1 The announcement came amid growing public discontent over the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis.
Kobakhidze, 45, is a constitutional scholar and a former speaker of the parliament. He has been a loyal ally of Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire founder and former leader of Georgian Dream, who stepped down from politics in January 2021 Kobakhidze was the campaign manager for the 2020 parliamentary elections, which were marred by allegations of fraud and violence by the opposition parties.
Garibashvili, 41, is also a close associate of Ivanishvili and a former business executive. He served as the prime minister twice, from 2013 to 2015 and from 2021 to 2022. He resigned on January 28, 2022, citing personal reasons. However, some analysts suggest that his departure was prompted by the pressure from the public and the international community over the deteriorating human rights situation and the political polarization in the country.
The change of the prime minister requires the approval of the parliament, where Georgian Dream holds a constitutional majority. The opposition parties, which have boycotted the parliament since the 2020 elections, have denounced Kobakhidze’s nomination as a continuation of Ivanishvili’s influence and a sign of the government’s disregard for the democratic reforms.
The new prime minister will face a number of challenges, including the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, the economic recession, the unresolved territorial conflicts with the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and the strained relations with Russia and the European Union. Kobakhidze has vowed to work for the stability and prosperity of Georgia and to pursue the country’s Euro-Atlantic integration.
