Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze stated that the country’s opposition is experiencing a profound leadership crisis. Speaking to Georgian journalists in Budapest, he emphasized that the opposition lacks charismatic or widely respected political figures.

“One of the main problems the opposition has is that they don’t have a single charismatic figure with high ratings – there is no such politician in the opposition,” Kobakhidze stated.

The Prime Minister attributed this leadership vacuum to external manipulation, claiming that low-rated politicians receive conflicting directives from abroad.

“In conditions where they have a serious crisis, including on a personal level, none of their initiatives can be successful,” Kobakhidze declared.

Speaking about the opposition’s prospects, the Prime Minister painted a bleak picture of their future, saying the “gravest situation” in opposition ranks will continue for years to come.

Regarding upcoming local elections, Kobakhidze dismissed the opposition’s chances entirely, suggesting they prefer to avoid participation rather than face another crushing defeat.

“Realistically, according to existing polls, we can achieve even higher results than what we received in the previous parliamentary elections,” he claimed.

“Accordingly, it’s very difficult for the opposition to make decisions.”

The Prime Minister described the internal opposition dynamics as marked by mutual “bullying,” noting that while two parties have signalled their intention to participate in the elections, two others are threatening those political alliances.

Kobakhidze suggested that final decisions would ultimately be made by external forces rather than within Georgia itself.

“These decisions are not made in Georgia – such decisions are made outside the country, and these parties typically obey the directives received from abroad,” he stated.

“No matter how damaging one decision or another might be for them, they immediately carry the instructions when they receive them,” the PM said.

The Prime Minister argued that neither participation nor boycotting elections would benefit the opposition, describing both scenarios as problematic for their political future.

“If they participate in elections, they are doomed to a very heavy defeat; if they don’t participate, that’s a separate problem for them, given that they will also lose the municipal council mandates they could potentially receive,” Kobakhidze explained.

He noted that with opposition parties already absent from parliament and unable to use the parliamentary platform, losing municipal representation would further marginalize them over the next four years.

Even if they do participate, Kobakhidze predicted the entire opposition could win at most 3-4 mandates across all municipal councils.