“The system holds such overwhelming control that there is virtually no chance for genuine competition; otherwise, the most convenient option for opposition parties would be to enter the elections now. What I am advocating for is far more challenging—mobilising the necessary resources to strengthen the protest movement,” said Ani Tsitlidze, a member of the United National Movement, in an interview with one of the media outlets.

According to Tsitlidze, the protest movement itself must also be reinforced.

“If Gakharia and Lelo enter the city council, will this weaken or strengthen Bidzina Ivanishvili? I would be happy to be proven wrong regarding participation, but with Gakharia, everything is certain. I would be very disappointed if Lelo joins. You shouldn’t need to understand the election environment to expect more; you should have anticipated it. Has anything changed for the better? Then tell me—what has changed?
Legislative amendments have even eliminated the possibility of comparing basic IDs to verify voter registration. They’ve banned that altogether. The system holds such overwhelming control that there is virtually no chance for genuine competition; otherwise, the most convenient option for opposition parties would be to enter the elections now. What I am advocating for is far more challenging—mobilising the necessary resources to strengthen the protest movement. The protest movement cannot remain static; it must be reinforced,” Ani Tsitlidze stated.

When asked, “Ultimately, how many votes did you secure in the elections?” Tsitlidze responded, “Ten per cent—that’s more than 200,000 votes.”

In response to another question: “Why aren’t at least 50,000 of your supporters protesting on the streets today?”

Tsitlidze explained: “First of all, supporters of the United National Movement have been protesting for 13 years, and even now, we have a very large base of supporters. Often, we confuse the voting electorate with the protest electorate. Have we warned these supporters before the elections that they might need to defend their votes afterwards? The opposition, however, failed to prepare them for this; instead, they celebrated victory early, at eight o’clock, claiming they were winners. The opposition has not worked to create a plan B about what to do if Bidzina Ivanishvili steals your votes, and supporters need to take to the streets the next day.

The United National Movement was the only force to speak out about this. Back then, half of the opposition labelled us radicals, and the Special Security Service even summoned us for questioning. These are two different realities.

The voting electorate and the protest electorate are distinct groups. In my firm belief, the primary goal of opposition parties should be to increase the protest electorate and convince as many people as possible to take to the streets.”