New Rector of Tbilisi State University Elected

The Great Council of the Tbilisi State University (TSU), which is the university?s main governing body elected Rusudan Lortkipanidze as the new Rector of the TSU on December 13.

Rusudan Lortkipanidze previously served as Georgia?s Ambassador to Italy and was viewed as President Saakashvili’s favored candidate.

Lortkipanidze replaced Roin Metreveli, who had been the chief of the university for the last 13 years and who resigned on October 1 after both a wave of corruption charges surfaced from a faction of students and he received pressure from the government.

Five contenders were running for this position. Two of them withdrew their candidacies shortly before the elections. The first round of elections failed to declare the winner. The second round, however, served as a runoff between the top two candidates and Rusudan Lortkipanidze received more votes from the Great Council members than her contender Mikheil Kurdiani.