Pension and salary increases, debt and fine cancellations. Start of Georgia's government election campaign - ISFED
Georgian government`s election campaign
The official election campaign in Georgia starts 60 days before the elections. However, the ruling party “Georgian Dream” has already unofficially begun its election campaign, according to a report by the NGO “Fair Elections” (ISFED).
Signs of mobilizing state resources and using administrative resources for election purposes have already been detected, the organization’s study notes.
The parliamentary elections in Georgia will be held on October 26, 2024. “Georgian Dream,” which has ruled the country for 12 years, will try to stay in power for a fourth term.
Pre-election social projects
The ISFED report states that the government traditionally launches large-scale social projects before elections. State initiatives showing signs of using administrative resources for electoral purposes have been identified.
The report lists specific social projects announced and launched by the government in 2024:
- In February 2024, the government initiated pension increases for military personnel. Starting May 1, pensions for former servicemen were raised to one thousand lari (about $355).
- This time, the state also resorted to canceling fines before the elections—citizens fined for violating COVID-19 regulations will be exempt from administrative fines.
- In April 2024, the prime minister announced the cancellation of tax debts. According to the Georgian government’s decision, all individuals, including individual entrepreneurs, will have their recognized tax debts incurred before January 1, 2021, completely written off. Prime minister Irakli Kobakhidze noted that after the bill’s adoption, 145,000 individuals will have a total tax debt of 590 million lari (about $209 million) completely written off.
- In February 2024, it was announced that interest rates would be reduced for pensioners who took out loans before 2023. This initiative affects over 150,000 elderly people.
- In February 2024, the Minister of Education, Science, and Youth announced a program of paid internships for students.
- Before the elections, salary increases were recorded in one of the most important and populous sectors—education. A new salary formula, which has raised many questions, will take effect on July 1, 2024, and is said to offer an “unprecedented” salary increase for teachers.
The ISFED report also discusses the April 29 rally organized by the government to support state policy and the “Transparency of Foreign Influence” law. It is noted that “Georgian Dream” actively used administrative resources to prepare for this event.
Key trends
An important part of the report is the discussion of key trends identified during the assessment of the situation ahead of the parliamentary elections on October 26, trends that were not present in previous elections in Georgia:
- For the first time in the country’s recent history, the ruling party has questioned the pro-Western foreign policy course and the unambiguity of European integration enshrined in the Georgian constitution, attempting to reconsider the pro-European consensus in society.
- Alongside moving closer to the European Union, anti-Western messages, including Euroscepticism, have intensified.
- The report states that the “foreign agents” law, passed by the government despite protests and severe criticism from much of Georgian society, the president of Georgia, the European Union, the USA, and other international friends, will significantly complicate the work of local monitoring organizations planning to oversee the October 26, 2024 elections. Moreover, some organizations might face the threat of ceasing operations.
- The authors of the report believe that a significant impact on the elections will be the fact that, for the first time in the country’s history, representatives of Georgia’s legislative and executive branches have been sanctioned by the US authorities.
- The report also mentions that the initiation of a package of constitutional and legislative amendments against the LGBT community is one of the steps taken by the government that violates human rights and damages the process of European integration.
- The media environment has sharply deteriorated in the run-up to the parliamentary elections. Social networks have also become highly polarized, the report says.
