Constitutional Court sets out case for banning five opposition parties ahead of hearings on 21–23 October

The Constitutional Court of Georgia has released details of the upcoming substantive hearing on the lawsuit seeking to declare the activities of five political parties unconstitutional and to ban them.

According to the court, the hearing will be held on 21, 22 and 23 October 2026, starting at 12:00 each day. The case is “Constitutional Lawsuit by Members of the Parliament of Georgia (88 Members in Total) on the Constitutionality and Prohibition of the Activities of Political Parties (Unity – National Movement; Coalition for Change Gvaramia Melia Girchi Droa; Strong Georgia – Lelo, For the People, For Freedom!; Federalist Party; Gakharia for Georgia)” (Constitutional Lawsuit No. 1979).

“In the view of the authors of the constitutional lawsuit, it is clearly established that all five political parties named in the suit have violated the first sentence of Article 23(3) of the Constitution of Georgia. On the one hand, this has already taken the form of attempts to overthrow and forcibly change Georgia’s constitutional order; on the other, it is evident in their continuing aim to overthrow and forcibly change that order in the future.

According to the claim, the constitutional grounds of undermining the country’s independence and violating its territorial integrity are also relevant in assessing the constitutionality of Unity – National Movement’s activities. More specifically, the authors of Lawsuit No. 1979 develop their arguments along several lines. The first is the overthrow and forcible change of Georgia’s constitutional order. They say this has taken the form of systemic and systematic violations of human rights by the parties concerned or their members, refusal to recognise the legitimacy of bodies and officials elected in general elections, and attempts to overthrow or forcibly change the constitutional order. The second is undermining Georgia’s independence and violating its territorial integrity, which they say took the form of events linked to the August 2008 war and events that unfolded after 2012.

The claimant also argues that, since 2016, the respondent parties have continuously rejected the domestic and foreign legitimacy, and therefore the constitutionality, of Georgia’s current government and ruling party. According to the claimant, the following circumstances confirm that the parties share the same unconstitutional aims:

* For years, in elected bodies, in Georgia’s political processes, and in the sabotage waged against the Georgian state, they have taken essentially the same positions, formed a coalition-like alliance pursuing a common goal, and still act this way today.
* Former or current leaders of the respondent parties were elected to various convocations of the Georgian Parliament on the lists of Unity – National Movement or of electoral blocs it took part in.
* They held various party posts in Unity – National Movement.
* During Unity – National Movement’s time in government (2004–2012), they held various senior posts, including political and state-political positions, and/or, during the same period, Unity – National Movement violated human rights with their assistance and participation.

In view of these considerations, the claimant believes that the facts and arguments in the lawsuit, aligned with both the Georgian Constitution and European Court of Human Rights principles, provide a firm constitutional ground to ban unconstitutional political parties. The claimant, Members of the Parliament of Georgia, therefore asks the Constitutional Court, under the first sentence of Article 23(3) and Article 23(4) of the Constitution, to declare the respondent parties’ activities unconstitutional and to ban them.

The Plenum of the Constitutional Court of Georgia will hear the case on its merits.

Subject of the dispute: declaring unconstitutional the activities of political parties (Unity – National Movement; Coalition for Change Gvaramia Melia Girchi Droa; Strong Georgia – Lelo, For the People, For Freedom!; Federalist Party; Gakharia for Georgia) and banning them,” the Constitutional Court said in its statement.