The ruling Georgian Dream party is seeking to ban five opposition parties, including ALDE Party member Lelo, part of the Strong Georgia coalition. If successful, the move could leave hundreds of thousands of voters in political limbo.
The country’s liberal forces are joining together to fight back. On 25 October, several ALDE member parties in Georgia joined a protest campaign in Tbilisi under the banner of the Opposition Alliance, with a clear message: “Georgia without Ivanishvili. Georgia deserves better.”
Lelo, which competed in Georgia’s disputed 2024 parliamentary elections as part of the Strong Georgia coalition, is now among the parties facing a ban. With the next parliamentary elections due in 2028, the move would sideline key political challengers and further restrict democratic competition.
Liberals fight back:
Liberals strongly condemn the proposed ban and call for the case to be withdrawn, also calling for tougher, targeted EU sanctions against those responsible for the crackdown. The European Parliament has also opposed the attempt to ban the parties.
The move comes amid a broader crackdown on dissent. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has labelled opponents “liberal fascists”, while authorities have tightened restrictions on protests, civil society and independent media. The government’s approach has been compared to Russia’s repression of opposition.
Opposition Alliance is taking its campaign to the streets with a campaign that will continue until 28 November. This date marks two years since Georgia’s EU accession talks were suspended until 2028 - a decision that sparked mass protests and concerns about their European future.
A fight for a European future:
For Georgia’s liberals, the fight is about more than the fate of five parties. It is about whether voters can choose their representatives freely, and whether the country can pursue a European future while its democratic freedoms are being restricted.
ALDE Party stands with Lelo and its liberal partners. As the Opposition Alliance takes its campaign to the streets, Georgia’s liberals are making clear that they will not accept a political system in which opposition can simply be banned.
The fight for a free, democratic and European Georgia is far from over.