An opposition-led protest march, “Georgia without Ivanishvili. Georgia deserves better,” took place in Tbilisi on October 25, launching a broader protest campaign to culminate in a larger demonstration on November 28 amid the ruling Georgian Dream party’s efforts to ban opposition parties through the Constitutional Court, Civil Georgia reported. The demonstration fell on the second anniversary of the disputed 2024 parliamentary elections and was organized by the Opposition Alliance, formed by nine political parties in March. Demonstrators set off from Tbilisi State University’s first building on Chavchavadze Avenue and marched to Rustaveli Metro Station, where politicians addressed the rally. November 28 is also the second anniversary of the non-stop protests that erupted after Georgian Dream announced it was suspending EU integration efforts.
Source: Civil Georgia, Oct 26
Coalition for Change leader Nika Gvaramia called the planned November 28 demonstration a “significant peak day,” adding: “We will fight every small battle, and we will win them all. In the courtroom, where this unequal battle resumes tomorrow, as well as on the streets and in the media, wherever we are granted access and wherever we happen to be, we must win everything, everywhere.” Tamar Chergoleishvili, leader of the Federalist Party, which is included in the lawsuit, said: “Ivanishvili admits his crisis of legitimacy by banning the alternative. He admits that he no longer trusts the Georgian people, that he is afraid of the free choice of the Georgian people, and rightly so.” Levan Tsutskiridze, leader of Freedom Square, a party not yet targeted in the current lawsuit, urged supporters to stand by the political parties, Civil Georgia reported.
Source: Civil Georgia, Oct 26
The court case behind the march
Georgian Dream initially filed the constitutional lawsuit in October 2025, seeking to outlaw the United National Movement, Lelo/Strong Georgia and Ahali/Coalition for Change; it was expanded in April 2026 to include the Federalists and in September to add For Georgia, the only opposition party still represented in Parliament, with each expansion resetting the court’s nine-month deadline to rule, Civil Georgia reported. The Constitutional Court concluded the third day of hearings on October 23, rejecting every motion presented by opposition parties, with hearings expected to resume on October 26.
Source: Civil Georgia, Oct 26
The Constitutional Court in the Black Sea city of Batumi opened hearings on October 21 in the government’s lawsuit seeking outright bans on the five main opposition parties, Reuters reported. Georgian Dream, in power since 2012, says the parties pose “a real threat to the constitutional order” and says it is protecting the country from opposition figures it says are trying to seize power and foment a war with Russia. The opposition and civil society groups say the move presages one-party rule: Giorgi Butikashvili, foreign secretary of the Ahali-Coalition for Change, said the ruling is about “depriving a large part of Georgian society of genuine political choice and fundamentally changing the nature of the country’s political system.” Rights groups and the European Union, which Georgia is seeking to join, have also condemned Georgian Dream’s move, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters, Oct 21