Parliament Expecting a New Chairman

How is the Power Division on the Day of Elections – November 9

The Parliament is unable to elect a Chairman. Consultations concerning the Chairman candidatures are continued in the legislative governmental branch. It is not excluded that second round of the election might be held in the Parliament. All three candidates – Nino Burjanadze, Vazha Lortkipanidze and Jemal Gogitidze have equal chances to go through the first round.

At the Parliament plenary session on November 8 candidatures of the Parliamentary Chairman were to be discussed. Because of the quorum absence it was just determined that consultations should be continued. Almost all factions discussed the candidatures of Nino Burjanadze and Vazha Lortkipanidze that day.

“Parliament should solve the matter of Chairman independently”, President Shevardnadze stated several times after the post became vacant. Somehow, in spite of the statement all three candidates regard it necessary to hold telephone conversation with the President and have an audience with him. Leader of the faction Revival Jemal Gogitidze was intending to meet the President on November 8 after having departed from Batumi. President had spoken on phone with Nino Burjanadze and Vazha Lortkipanidze before that.

Member of the faction Citizens’ Union Nino Burjanadze was proposed on the position by the faction Traditionalist. She is supported with about 90 MPs in the Parliament (45 MPs form the CUG, 13 MPs from the Traditionalist, 29 MPs form the coalition of the Industrialists and the Majorettes, as well as several independent MPs).

Independent MP of Baghati region Vazha Lortkipanidze is supported by the faction Tanadgoma, which named him on the position, with 18 MPs, Alliance for New Georgia – 17 MPs (these are the faction devoted to the President), members of the factions Abkhazia and New Abkahzia – Christian-Democrats as well as part of independent MPs. Approximately 50-55 MPs in total are intending to vote for Lortkipanidze.

As to the third candidate, leader of the faction Revival Jemal Gogitidze, the following factions are backing him: the Revival (11 MPs), the United Georgia (12 MPs), the Socialist (11 MPs) and the 21st Century (10 MPs).  50 MPs are thought to vote for him in all. 

There are MPs in the Parliament who have not determined who they want to vote for yet. Their votes are “hunted” in the Parliament right now. There are 235 members in Georgian Parliament in total. Thus there are up to 40 MPs who have not yet decided who they want to poll for.

None of the candidates have sufficient number of votes, which is 118, for winning the elections by now. According to the 106th article of the Parliament regulations, if there are more than two candidates in the elections and none of them accumulate sufficient number of votes second round is held between the two candidates having got the majority of votes. The one having accumulating most of the votes, at least one thirds of the total number of MPs (79 votes) will be announced elected.