Georgian Dream posted the highest results in rural areas, particularly in the Samtskhe-Javakheti, Kvemo Kartli, Svaneti, Racha-Lechkhumi, Guria, and Adjara regions, but lost the capital Tbilisi and also Rustavi to the opposition, while only closely winning other major cities.

[48] Garibashvili also noted that neither the West nor Ukraine imposed sanctions on Russia during or after the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, and even continued "business as usual", including a Russian reset, while Georgia was being asked to sacrifice itself and "destroy its economy".

[51] In turn, the sovereignist faction People's Power broke away from Georgian Dream in August 2022, and proposed legislation to regulate foreign influence by creating a special registry to monitor politically active foreign-funded organizations, many of which are Western-funded.

[59] However, in December 2023, the European Union decided to grant Georgia candidate status following the release from prison of opposition journalist Nika Gvaramia, who had been arrested on charges of abuse of power and embezzlement, and the parliament's decision to turn down impeachment proceedings against pro-opposition president Salome Zourabichvili.

[60][61][62] In late December 2023, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili summarized the year by saying that the government had managed to "preserve the peace" amid the threat of destabilization caused by "radical groups and hostile forces operating within the country",[63] and also to secure EU candidate status for Georgia.

[64] In early 2024, Georgia again experienced a significant political crisis and public unrest due to the reintroduction of the "foreign agent" law, which many citizens perceived as a threat to civil liberties and democratic principles.

The leader of the parliamentary majority, Mamuka Mdinaradze, said that the reason for reintroduction of the bill was the continued circulation of slush funds in the country through non-governmental organizations and covert foreign financing of political activities.

[71] Protesters and other critics, including the European Union and Western countries, spoke out against the bill, arguing that it would stifle democracy and freedom of the press in Georgia and comparing it to the Russian foreign agent law.

The plan includes forming a temporary government post-elections to implement key reforms intended to "enhance democratic processes and align Georgia more closely with European standards", after which new elections will be held.

The Charter's main goals include repealing laws that the opposition considers as hindrances to European integration and undertaking significant judicial and electoral reforms to ensure "a fair and democratic process".

[138] The following day, after a meeting at the presidential administration, Khazaradze acknowledged that while some issues persist, including questions regarding the events of 20 June 2019,[139] and the Anaklia Sea Port project, he and Gakharia are united in their goal to oust the ruling Georgian Dream party.

[157][158] Prior to officially launching its campaign, on 20 August, the Political Council of Georgian Dream issued a statement, saying that the election would be a referendum on "on war vs. peace, traditional values vs. moral degradation, subservience to external powers vs. an independent and sovereign state".

Ivanishvili claimed that the 2008 war was "a well-planned provocation from the outside against the Georgian and Ossetian people, the purpose of which was to split unity, destroy relations and make them exist in conditions of endless, artificial confrontation".

The ruling party branded this initiative as part of their commitment to uphold "national values and traditions," in line with their campaign promises to ban "LGBT propaganda" and reinforce the role of the Church.

The party is committed to fast-tracking Georgia's EU integration, ensuring sectoral benefits like access to the single market, the European Energy Union, and application of digital policies before full membership.

Proposed initiatives include developing a school nutrition program, providing housing support for students, updating research laboratories, promoting vocational education, and increasing the number of kindergartens in municipalities with significant ethnic minority populations.

To address the needs of populations in occupied regions and promote peaceful conflict resolution, the coalition aims to create better educational and employment opportunities while enhancing access to prospects arising from Georgia's candidacy for European Union membership and establishing free economic and trade zones.

[207] Gvaramia emphasized his own experience of what he called a "political imprisonment" at the hands of the Georgian Dream government, addressing the prison population by telling them that "I will be your supporter in every circumstance" and promising to deliver them what they deserve.

According to Gvaramia, the coalition aims to prioritize the following four areas immediately after taking office: During the election campaign, the Alliance of Patriots, Conservative Movement/Alt-Info and Georgian Idea, running on the same electoral list, held joint meetings with the supporters throughout country.

Criticizing this theory, the video clip cited China and South Korea as examples of the "most successful development models", with them being "hybrid economies" in which the state runs and intervenes in the "strategic sectors", while otherwise allowing free entrepreneurship.

[213][214] The Labor Party of Georgia emphasizes the importance of establishing fully free healthcare, including diagnosis, treatment, surgery, and rehabilitation, while advocating for state hospitals to be treated equally to private facilities.

[citation needed] In education, the Labor Party commits to providing free schooling at all levels, offering two meals a day for students, and ensuring personal computers and internet access for children from first to twelfth grades.

The resolution called for sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili and his family, opposed the Foreign Agents and anti-LGBT laws, and emphasized the need for free and fair elections and democratic reforms in line with the EU's criteria.

It also criticized "political persecution, violence against opposition, and disinformation campaigns", urging the EU to support civil society, strengthen election monitoring, and impose sanctions on "those undermining democracy".

The resolution urged the European Union to freeze aid to the Georgian government, impose sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili and other individuals responsible for the "erosion of democracy", and ensure that "anti-democratic laws are aligned with the criteria for visa liberalization".

[243] Additionally, the draft resolution called on the Georgian government to halt its campaign of "opposition intimidation and anti-Western disinformation, impose sanctions on Russia, release former President Mikheil Saakashvili on humanitarian grounds, and ensure a peaceful transfer of power based on electoral outcomes".

The MEGOBARI Act would emphasize "the U.S. commitment to upholding democratic values, human rights, and the rule of law" in Georgia, acknowledge the progress made by Georgian civil society and stress the need to "strengthen democracy for regional stability and U.S.

[258] Should "significant democratic progress be confirmed", the MEGOBARI Act provides for additional U.S. assistance, including a more preferential trade agreement with Georgia, enhanced people-to-people exchanges and visa simplification, an economic modernization package, and security and defense support against Russian aggression.

Namely, the Chief of Special Task Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia Khareba Kharazishvili and his deputy Mileri Lagazauri were sanctioned, along with the leaders of the Conservative Movement/Alt-Info party Zura Makharadze and Konstantine Morgoshia.

Opposition leaders announced that protests would be daily and would intensify over time and urged supporters to gather across Tbilisi in large numbers to obstruct parliament access and maintain visible pressure on authorities.