#Georgia
News
Georgia’s Higher Education ‘Reform’: The Capstone of an Authoritarian Turn
Georgia’s government has announced a sweeping reform of higher education that pulls more decisions under central control, trims academic diversity, and limits international engagement. This is not an administrative adjustment—it’s a decisive move to bring one of the country’s last relatively plural arenas entirely under political authority. Sandro Tabatadze explains what is at stake.
31.10.2025
Democracy at Stake: Future Scenarios after Georgia’s Landmark Elections
On October 26, Georgia's parliamentary elections will serve as a referendum on its future, out of which three main scenarios emerge. In the first, the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party wins, consolidates authoritarian rule, and aligns with Russia. A second scenario sees the opposition winning, potentially restoring democracy and accelerating EU integration. However, the most likely scenario involves contested results, which could trigger public unrest, violent clashes, and even Russian intervention. This critical election will most likely determine whether Georgia embraces European-style democracy or solidifies authoritarianism, risking further isolation from Western allies.
23.10.2024
Podcasts
Lia Tsuladze on How Georgian Dream Has Diverted Away from Europe and Its Implications for the Upcoming Elections
The Georgia Dream movement came to power over a decade ago. It initially claimed to want to uphold the European integration policies of its predecessor, but has slowly moved towards a more sovereign discourse. Over time, Georgia Dream has increasingly fueled affective political polarization, and now accuses its pro-European critics of wanting to drag Georgia into a war with Russia. It has furthermore vehemently defended adopting controversial anti-democratic legislation such as the so called ‘foreign agents’ law.
21.10.2024
Russian Soft Power: Shaping Georgia’s Political Future?
As Georgia approaches a pivotal parliamentary election on October 26, the ruling party – Georgian Dream – remains surprisingly resilient in its popularity. Despite large-scale anti-government protests earlier this year sparked by the controversial “foreign agents” bill, and opposition efforts to frame the ruling party as a Kremlin puppet steering the country away from its Western integration path, Georgian Dream is continuing to lead in pre-election polls one month before the elections.
1.10.2024
Europe Turns East – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine
Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine has put eastern Europe firmly at the centre of the EU’s foreign policy agenda, transformed attitudes to defence and given fresh impetus to reforms by candidates for EU membership. But with rightwing movements and authoritarianism gaining ground, support for Ukraine and EU enlargement is under threat.
16.05.2024
