Gakharia For Georgia ( ka, გახარია საქართველოსთვის, tr) is a
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States
Georgia may also refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
founded by former Georgian
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
from the
Georgian Dream
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a Conservatism, conservative and populism, populist List of political parties in Georgia (country), political party in Georgia (country), Georgia, which has ...
party
Giorgi Gakharia. It is currently in opposition with it having 12 MPs in the
Georgian parliament.
History
Foundation
Giorgi Gakharia, a Prime Minister from the ruling
Georgian Dream
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a Conservatism, conservative and populism, populist List of political parties in Georgia (country), political party in Georgia (country), Georgia, which has ...
party, announced his resignation in February 2021, citing his opposition to the court-ordered arrest of his political rival
United National Movement leader
Nika Melia on charges of organizing violence in the
2019 protests
Nineteen or 19 may refer to:
* 19 (number)
* One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019
Films
* ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film
* ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film
* '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film
* '' D ...
. He then announced that he no longer agreed with the positions of the
Georgian Dream
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a Conservatism, conservative and populism, populist List of political parties in Georgia (country), political party in Georgia (country), Georgia, which has ...
party and his departure. Several MPs from Georgian Dream joined him to form the For Georgia party. The MPs included Giorgi Khojevanishvili, Beka Liluashvili,
Ana Buchukuri, Alexander Motserelia, Shalva Kereselidze and Mikheil Daushvili. The party presentation was held on 29 May 2021. For Georgia was soon joined by multiple local councillors from several
municipalities
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
.
2021 Georgian local elections
The party participated in the
2021 local elections coming in third place, behind GD and UNM, getting a nationwide vote share of 7.81%. Gakharia also came in third place in the
2021 Tbilisi mayoral election getting 9.41% of the vote. Gakharia refused to endorse either Melia or the incumbent from GD
Kakha Kaladze in the second round. It subsequently managed to form coalition governments in four municipalities with the
United National Movement and
Lelo for Georgia
Lelo burti, Lelo for Georgia ( ka, ლელო საქართველოსთვის, tr, ) is a Liberalism, liberal political party in Georgia (country), Georgia. It was established in 2019 by two businessmen Mamuka Khazaradze and Badri ...
opposition parties.
2024 Georgian parliamentary elections
The party supported the widespread
protests against the controversial 'foreign agent' bill in 2023 and once again in 2024 after its reintroduction and passage. Ahead of the
2024 parliamentary election, For Georgia, by the initiative of the
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
Salome Zourabichvili
Salomé Nino Zourabichvili (born 18March 1952) is a French-born Georgian politician, former diplomat, and the fifth president of Georgia – the first female to be elected as president in the country's history. As a result of the constitutiona ...
, tried to forge a coalition with
Lelo's
Strong Georgia
Strong Georgia (SG; Georgian: ძლიერი საქართველო, romanized: ''dzlieri sakartvelo'') is an informal political coalition of pro-European political parties in Georgia. Its platform has generally been placed on the cent ...
bloc. On 20 September, For Georgia pulled out of the talks citing irreconcilable differences. Gakharia however thanked the president and Strong Georgia's leader
Mamuka Khazaradze for the attempt and pledged future cooperation. For Georgia subsequently announced that
Zviad Dzidziguri, the chairman of the
Conservative Party, would be running on its electoral list. It also signed the president's initiative
Georgian Charter that set out goals for a possible interim coalition government involving For Georgia,
Strong Georgia
Strong Georgia (SG; Georgian: ძლიერი საქართველო, romanized: ''dzlieri sakartvelo'') is an informal political coalition of pro-European political parties in Georgia. Its platform has generally been placed on the cent ...
,
Unity – National Movement
Unity – National Movement ( ka, ერთიანობა – ნაციონალური მოძრაობა, tr) is an informal Political alliance, politician coalition of Western world, pro-Western List of political parties in Geo ...
and
Coalition for Change in case of their victory in the election for the purpose of ensuring the transition of power from the ruling
Georgian Dream
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a Conservatism, conservative and populism, populist List of political parties in Georgia (country), political party in Georgia (country), Georgia, which has ...
party and holding a
snap parliamentary election afterwards. However, the For Georgia party also positioned itself as an alternative to both Georgian Dream and National Movement, two largest parties in Georgia at that time, pledging to not form coalition government with any of it in the future. Nevertheless, the For Georgia and other opposition parties lost due to alleged fraud in the
2024 Georgian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Georgia (country), Georgia on 26 October 2024. The elections were held under the rules passed in 2017 through the constitutional amendments which shifted the electoral system towards a fully proportional r ...
, with For Georgia receiving 8% of the vote, finishing on 5th place and becoming 4th largest opposition coalition in the government with 12 seats. Dzidziguri, the chair of the Conservative Party, who ran on the For Georgia candidate list was elected among those 12.
Ideology
For Georgia describes itself as a
social democratic
Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...
and
progressive party.
It is usually placed on the
centre
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
to
centre-left
Centre-left politics is the range of left-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. Ideologies commonly associated with it include social democracy, social liberalism, progressivism, and green politics. Ideas commo ...
of the political spectrum.
Its ideology has been described as being based on
social liberalism
Social liberalism is a political philosophy and variety of liberalism that endorses social justice, social services, a mixed economy, and the expansion of civil and political rights, as opposed to classical liberalism which favors limited g ...
,
anti-corruption
Anti-corruption (or anticorruption) comprises activities that oppose or inhibit corruption. Just as corruption takes many forms, anti-corruption efforts vary in scope and in strategy. A general distinction between preventive and reactive measur ...
,
reformism
Reformism is a political tendency advocating the reform of an existing system or institution – often a political or religious establishment – as opposed to its abolition and replacement via revolution.
Within the socialist movement, ref ...
, and
technocracy
Technocracy is a form of government in which decision-makers appoint knowledge experts in specific domains to provide them with advice and guidance in various areas of their policy-making responsibilities. Technocracy follows largely in the tra ...
with its foreign policy being
pro-European
Pro-Europeanism, sometimes called European Unionism, is a political position that favours European integration and membership of the European Union (EU).Krisztina Arató, Petr Kaniok (editors). ''Euroscepticism and European Integration''. Pol ...
.
Gakharia himself has been described as a
liberal politician.
The party's economic policy is based on
free market
In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...
principles, while additionally pledging to create a
social protection
Social protection, as defined by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, is concerned with preventing, managing, and overcoming situations that adversely affect people's well-being. Social protection consists of policies and ...
system that will provide basic social services for the most vulnerable groups of the population. It seeks to strengthen
rule of law
The essence of the rule of law is that all people and institutions within a Body politic, political body are subject to the same laws. This concept is sometimes stated simply as "no one is above the law" or "all are equal before the law". Acco ...
and
checks and balances
The separation of powers principle functionally differentiates several types of state power (usually law-making, adjudication, and execution) and requires these operations of government to be conceptually and institutionally distinguishabl ...
, reform
education system
The educational system generally refers to the structure of all institutions and the opportunities for obtaining education within a country. It includes all pre-school institutions, starting from family education, and/or early childhood education ...
to create competitive
human capital
Human capital or human assets is a concept used by economists to designate personal attributes considered useful in the production process. It encompasses employee knowledge, skills, know-how, good health, and education. Human capital has a subs ...
, reduce
bureaucracy
Bureaucracy ( ) is a system of organization where laws or regulatory authority are implemented by civil servants or non-elected officials (most of the time). Historically, a bureaucracy was a government administration managed by departments ...
and
centralization
Centralisation or centralization (American English) is the process by which the activities of an organisation, particularly those regarding planning, decision-making, and framing strategies and policies, become concentrated within a particular ...
, take active measures against
corruption
Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...
and influence of interest groups on
government agencies
A government agency or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government (bureaucracy) that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, ...
, and further integration of Georgia into
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
and
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
. During the 2024 parliamentary election campaign, the party has promised to increase the minimum wage from the nominal 50 lari to 950 lari, introduce 6-month
unemployment benefit
Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for Work (hu ...
s, and tying the increase of pensions with that of the economy.
In April 2024, the party voiced its support for "ruling party's aspirations to protect family values".
In June 2024, despite not attending the discussions in the
Parliament of Georgia
The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members elected through fully pr ...
on the
proposed bill to outlaw the "LGBT propaganda" in the country and being accused by the ruling
Georgian Dream
Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a Conservatism, conservative and populism, populist List of political parties in Georgia (country), political party in Georgia (country), Georgia, which has ...
party of "supporting the LGBT propaganda", the MP Mikheil Daushvili said that the party opposes "propaganda directed at children, especially LGBT propaganda".
However, the party considers the ban on LGBT propaganda to be an insufficient measure to encourage the family values, with the MP Shalva Kereselidze saying that the party requires "higher support from the state for the enhancement of the Georgian families", such as more state support for the regions in which the demographic situation is declining due to economic problems.
Electoral performance
Parliamentary election
Local elections
Seats in municipal assemblies
External links
Party Official site
References
{{Georgian political crisis
Pro-European political parties in Georgia (country)
Political parties established in 2021