ISSA survey: Up to 60% of respondents support protests, 76.3% support the release of prisoners

Eggs were thrown at Salome Zurabishvili at the airport after Gakharia

A video of the incident is circulating on social media.The video shows a citizen approaching Salome Zurabishvili, calling her a traitor, and then throwing eggs at the 5th President.One person is heard saying to Salome Zurabishvili, “Do you bring the money in cash or is it transferred to your account?”The footage shows several eggs hitting the 5th President.For reference, early yesterday morning, Giorgi Gakharia was also met with eggs thrown at him upon his return from Munich at Tbilisi International Airport. The For Georgia party claims that this was a pre-organized “special group” arranged by Georgian Dream at the location.US Congressman Joe Wilson writes on X: “the brutal Ivanishvili regime has attacked Legitimate Georgian President Salome Zourabichvil & former Georgian PM Giorgi Gakharia. Enough! Georgia is descending into a nightmarish dictatorship aligned fully with US adversaries. We need immediate sanctions & free and fair elections”.

Okuashvili blames the shutdown of the "Main Channel" on its "informal...

“At a time of crisis in Georgia, while I am engaged in legal proceedings in London and Stockholm against Ivanishvili and his government, Nika Gvaramia (Co-Chairman of political party “Ahali”) through a deliberate campaign, is forcing me to issue public responses.The suspension of Mtavari Arkhi’s broadcasting was carried out under Gvaramia’s orders and through an unlawful decision by the channel’s current General Director, falsely claiming that I ordered the shutdown, to discredit me.Prior to the shutdown and statement, Mtavari Arkhi proposed paying an initial amount of 1 million on the condition that my appointed director, Giorgi Kurdadze, would declare to the National Bank of Georgia and the General Prosecutor’s Office that he no longer believed illegal activities occurred at the channel. Additionally, Kurdadze was being pressured to sign unlawful documents they had prepared. They threatened a new smear campaign against me if he refused.As the founder, my demand is clear: the ongoing illegal financial operations, fraud, and money laundering at Mtavari Arkhi must cease immediately. The General Director Giorgi Gabunia, must be replaced. Rather than Giorgi Gabunia, a professional, credible individual—trustworthy to the public—should be appointed. Nika Gvaramia’s proposal to appoint his wife, Sopho Liluashvili, is not acceptable for me.Mtavari Arkhi must continue broadcasting lawfully and without obstruction. The unlawful shutdown, ordered by Nika Gvaramia, who acts as the channel’s informal manager, and carried out in violation of the law and the channel’s statute, will be addressed by my legal team of British and American attorneys”, - the statement reads. 

UK does not recognize the legitimacy of the so-called presidential ele...

The United Kingdom reaffirmed its full support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia.“The United Kingdom does not recognize the legitimacy of the so-called presidential elections held in the Abkhazian region of Georgia on February 15, 2025.We reaffirm our full support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia within its internationally recognized borders,” reads the statement.The so-called presidential elections were held in occupied Abkhazia on February 15. Five “candidates” were running for the “presidency”: Badra Gunba, Adgur Ardzinba, Oleg Bartsits, Robert Arshba, and Adgur Khurkhumali.A second round of the so-called early presidential elections will also be held in occupied Abkhazia, in which Badra Gunba and Adgur Ardzinba will face each other.

Salome Zurabishvili will participate in the Munich Security Conference

According to Zurabishvili’s press office, she will hold high-level bilateral meetings with European leaders and the U.S. delegation.Additionally, meetings are planned in Munich with representatives of the European Union and other international organizations.Salome Zurabishvili will take part in panel discussions at the Munich Conference, including "Georgia in the Spotlight" and "Russia's Hybrid Tactics," where she will discuss the current situation and challenges in the country.According to the press office, Zurabishvili will also meet with representatives of the Georgian diaspora in Munich.

ISSA survey: Up to 60% of respondents support protests, 76.3% support...

According to the survey: The majority of respondents (up to 62%) indicate that the country is moving in the wrong direction. 82.1% of respondents consider the current situation in the country to be a political crisis, while up to 78% hold the Georgian Dream party primarily responsible for the political crisis. The population identifies the following as the most acute problems facing the country: a) high prices and b) unemployment. In addition, the following are among the acute problems: emigration of Georgians, the spread/use of drugs, poverty, unfairly conducted parliamentary elections, crime and insecurity, etc. 67.1% consider the statement made by Irakli Kobakhidze on November 28, 2024, about suspending European integration until 2028 unacceptable. The majority (up to 55%) believes that the Georgian Dream’s foreign policy serves the interests of Russia/countries close to Russia (China, Iran, etc.). In addition, 30.1% believe that the Georgian Dream pursues a balanced foreign policy and does not specifically pursue the interests of any country. Only 7% are convinced that the Georgian Dream is on the path of integration with the West (Europe, USA) and Western structures (EU, NATO). The majority of respondents (up to 67%) negatively assess the severance of strategic relations with the USA. Georgia’s accession to the European Union is supported by a large majority – 86.3%, and NATO – by 74.2%. Despite this, more than half of the respondents (up to 53%) are in favor of Georgia not joining any political/military international structure and maintaining neutrality. The majority of the population (54.2%) finds the statements of the Georgian Dream about the anti-Georgian influence of the “Deaf State” and the “Global War *  Party” unconvincing; a quarter (25.3%) finds it difficult to express a position on the credibility of these statements. Up to 60% of respondents support the ongoing protests in Georgia; 45% of respondents are active supporters of the protests. The October 26, 2024 elections were held unfairly, according to approximately 43% of respondents, and according to an additional 16% – equally fair and unfair (“50/50”). More than half of the respondents (51.3%) declare that they voted for an opposition political force in the elections, while approximately a third (32%) confirm that they voted for the “Georgian Dream”. Up to 17% do not reveal their choice. Up to 48% consider the presence of the “Georgian Dream” in power illegal/illegitimate, and 39.2% consider it legal/legitimate. The majority agrees with the main demands of the ongoing protests; in particular, 62% support the appointment of new parliamentary elections, and 76.3% – the release of prisoners. In the event of new parliamentary elections being called, the vast majority (within 80%) have a high willingness to participate. Among those who do not rule out participating in new elections, support for the Georgian Dream (by allocation) is 31.5%. The majority of respondents (up to 55%) do not share the view that if the Georgian Dream does not remain in power, the risk of Georgia getting involved in a war with Russia will increase. 35.5% of respondents see such a risk more or less; however, only 15.3% are sure of this. When assessing the activities/events of various actors in recent months, the most positive attitude is towards the activities of Salome Zurabishvili (49%). The share of those who positively assess the activities of non-governmental organizations in recent months (up to 36%) exceeds the share of those who evaluate them negatively (up to 30%). Those who negatively assess the activities of opposition political parties after the October 26 elections (up to 38%) outnumber those who positively assess them (33.2%); while more than half (53.2%) negatively assess the activities of the Georgian Dream after the October 26 elections. A negative assessment was received by the election of Mikheil Kavelashvili as President of Georgia (57.2%). Up to 52% of respondents consider the sanctions imposed by the US against Bidzina Ivanishvili to be fair, and almost the same number – against senior officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Respondents mainly receive information about the socio-political events in the country from Georgian television channels and social media. Among television channels, Imedi (up to 42%), Main Channel (up to 38%) and TV Pirveli (33.4%) are in the lead by a small margin. Among social media, Facebook is the undisputed leader. The quantitative study was conducted by the Institute for Social Research and Analysis (ISSA). Fieldwork was conducted between January 18-30, 2025, and 2,000 respondents were interviewed face-to-face. The adult (18+) population of Georgia was surveyed. The margin of error is +- 2.2%, with a 95% confidence level. The Institute for Social Research and Analysis (ISSA) is a research organization that has been operating since 2000. The organization conducts both quantitative and qualitative research.