Georgia’s party ban: Court to begin hearing government case against opposition on 21 October

At noon on 21 October, Georgia’s Constitutional Court will begin hearing on the merits a case brought by the ruling Georgian Dream party, which is seeking to ban five opposition parties and political groups. The hearings will take place in Batumi and continue on 22 and 23 October.

Four of the five parties intend to defend their positions in court, while the fifth will boycott the proceedings. Some opposition groups also plan to hold protests in Batumi and Tbilisi alongside the hearings.

The Constitutional Court’s full bench will hear the case, meaning all its sitting judges. The court has nine seats, but only seven judges currently serve on it, with two vacancies. On 13 October, Manana Kobakhidze, one of the founders of Georgian Dream, left the court. She had previously asked to recuse herself from the case, but the court rejected her request. Kobakhidze said she had made the decision to leave the court independently and for personal reasons.

Georgian Dream MPs Archil Gorduladze, Giorgi Kakhiani, Tengiz Sharmanashvili and Tornike Cheishvili will represent the party in court.

Under the law, the court must deliver its ruling by 24 June 2027.

Why is Georgian Dream seeking to ban the parties?

The claimants — 88 Georgian Dream MPs — argue that all five parties have violated Article 23 of the Constitution, which prohibits political parties that aim to overthrow or forcibly change the constitutional order.

According to information released by the court, the claimants cite alleged human rights violations between 2004 and 2012, when one of the parties, the United National Movement (UNM), was in power. They also point to the parties’ current refusal to recognise Georgian Dream’s legitimacy. The claimants say the parties have rejected the government’s legitimacy since 2016 and are pursuing a common goal.

The claimants also accuse the parties of attempting to overthrow the government. In the case of the United National Movement, they further allege that it undermined the country’s independence and territorial integrity, citing the August 2008 war.

The opposition parties reject all these accusations.

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What do the parties facing a ban plan to do?

United National Movement

The party will attend the court hearings, said Irakli Pavlenishvili, chair of its governing council. He called on members of the public to gather outside the courthouse in Batumi on the days of the hearings.

The UNM’s jailed founder and Georgia’s third president, Mikheil Saakashvili, has also demanded that he attend the proceedings. In a statement released on 17 October, he said he wanted the authorities to bring him to Batumi so he could “fully expose this so-called court and its master for their historic betrayal”. Much of the case against the parties concerns Saakashvili’s time in power, from 2004 to 2012.

The party’s leader, Levan Khabeishvili, who is also in prison, has likewise demanded permission to attend the hearings.

The UNM belongs to the opposition alliance and takes part in its protests.

• What is the Opposition Alliance?

  

  The Opposition Alliance “Unity for Victory” was formed by nine pro-Western Georgian parties on 2 March 2026, following months of negotiations.

  Its members are the United National Movement, Ahali, Girchi – More Freedom, Droa, the Federalists, European Georgia, Strategy Aghmashenebeli, Freedom Square and the National Democratic Party.

  The alliance says its goals are to end the rule of Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder and honorary chairman of Georgian Dream, restore Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic course, release political prisoners and form a coalition government after Georgian Dream loses a free election.

  The parties retain their ideological independence but have agreed on a joint strategy for protests and communications.

  The alliance’s largest rally to date took place in Tbilisi on 26 May 2026, Georgia’s Independence Day.

  Two other major opposition parties, Lelo and For Georgia, led by Giorgi Gakharia, have not joined the alliance. Lelo chose to operate independently, while For Georgia rejected an alliance with the United National Movement and parties that split from it.

Coalition for Change

The coalition will also take part in the hearings. Its member parties — Ahali, Girchi – More Freedom and Droa — also belong to the Opposition Alliance. On 15 October, Nika Gvaramia, leader of Ahali, announced the launch of a joint campaign by the alliance.

Gvaramia said their struggle would not be confined to the courtroom. “We will be everywhere, including on the streets of Tbilisi,” he promised.

Strong Georgia – Lelo

Lelo will attend the hearings and has asked the Public Defender (ombudsman) to submit a legal opinion on the case. As of 19 October, the ombudsman’s office had not responded.

Lelo is not a member of the alliance. The party’s political council says it has several scenarios and an action plan ready in case the court approves the ban.

For Georgia

The party announced in a statement on 20 October that it would take part in the proceedings. However, it insists that the court consider the case against it separately, rather than together with the other parties.

The party of former Georgian prime minister Giorgi Gakharia does not belong to the Opposition Alliance. It was the only one of the five parties that refused to surrender its parliamentary mandate in protest and nevertheless entered parliament.

The Federalists

The party has decided not to attend the hearings, saying it does not want to lend the proceedings a veneer of legal legitimacy.

According to party leader Tamara Chergoleishvili, the Federalists will travel to Batumi but protest against the court proceedings outside the courthouse rather than in the courtroom.

Why does it matter whether the parties attend the hearings?

The parties’ attendance could affect their chances of appealing the verdict to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg.

Sandro Baramidze, a lawyer with Transparency International Georgia, explains that the ECHR requires applicants to raise and document their arguments through domestic legal proceedings first. If a party does not attend the hearing, its application to the court in Strasbourg could therefore be declared inadmissible.

Who is organising the protests?

As Georgian Dream seeks to ban the parties listed above, the Opposition Alliance has announced a protest campaign.

The first demonstration will take place at 11:00 on 21 October in Batumi, outside the Constitutional Court. Freedom Square, a member of the alliance, is organising the protest.

At 19:00 on 25 October in Tbilisi, outside the first building of Tbilisi State University, the Opposition Alliance will launch a joint campaign aimed at organising a large demonstration in Tbilisi on 28 November.

As of 20 October, Lelo and For Georgia had not said whether they would join the protests.

What is the rest of the opposition doing?

In addition to the parties facing a ban, the Opposition Alliance includes European Georgia, Strategy Aghmashenebeli, Freedom Square and the National Democratic Party. These parties are not named in the lawsuit but take part in all the alliance’s protests.

Levan Tsutskiridze, leader of Freedom Square, believes that banning the parties would create a bigger problem for Georgian Dream itself.

He says a ban will not make the country’s problems disappear. Instead, it will “close off the political path to solving these problems and guarantee an even worse end for Georgian Dream”.

Viktor Kipiani, leader of the party For Georgia First, points to the same risk:

Banning opposition parties through the courts effectively brings the political process to a standstill, while making change through elections virtually impossible.

He believes this will accelerate radicalisation in the country.

The Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association has now issued its independent legal assessment of the case for the third time, arguing that the lawsuit aims to eliminate political competition.

What is the European Union saying?

EU institutions have reacted strongly to the Georgian authorities’ attempt to ban opposition parties:

• The European Parliament adopted another critical resolution, calling for the immediate withdrawal of the lawsuit and saying it was considering personal sanctions against those who initiated the proceedings.
• Christian Wigand, a European Commission spokesman, said Brussels was closely monitoring developments. He said the attempt to abolish leading political forces, alongside the Georgian authorities’ earlier statements and legislative changes, pointed to a worrying instrumentalisation of the justice system. This directly threatens democratic pluralism and fundamental freedoms.

On 20 October, Georgia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded that questioning the legitimacy of the proceedings before the court had even examined the case amounted to an attempt to pressure the court and interfere in the country’s internal affairs. The ministry urged EU representatives to refrain from statements that prejudge the proceedings.

What happens if the court upholds the lawsuit?

If the court upholds the lawsuit, the five parties will legally cease to exist. According to official figures from the Central Election Commission, a total of 784,820 voters backed the five parties in the 2024 parliamentary election.

Under current legislation, the court may also, at the claimant’s request, ban people associated with the dissolved parties from engaging in political activity. The law also provides a 14-day procedure for banning a successor party.

The hearings scheduled for 21–23 October mark the first stage in the proceedings. It remains unclear how long the case will take or when the court will deliver its ruling.