Saakashvili Runs for Presidency

‘Velvet Revolution’ Leaders Agree on Power-Sharing Policy

Bloodless revolution leaders.

The leaders of the bloodless revolution, which led Shevardnadze out of office, announced today Mikheil Saakashvili as their single candidate to run for presidential elections, scheduled for January 4.

Nino Burjanadze and Zurab Zhvania said they put aside all the personal rivalries in order to succeed in the presidential and parliamentary elections.

The decision was widely anticipated, as Mikheil Saakashvili was a driving force of the three-week long street protests demanding Shevardnadze’s resignation.

“The presidential election campaign has already started and I am sure we will win. I am ready for our victory in the forthcoming elections,” Mikheil Saakashvili said at a joint new conference with interim president Nino Burjanadze and Zurab Zhvania.

Mikheil Saakashvili also said that his National Movement party and United Democrats party, led by Nino Burjanadze and Zurab Zhvania, will form a joint election bloc to run for the parliamentary elections, the date of which is not scheduled yet.

“Nino Burjanadze will be the leader of our election bloc,” Saakashvili added.

Zurab Zhvania said that the revolution is over. “However we are facing huge challenges ahead. First of all we should secure free and fair elections. And on the other hand we should tackle numerous problems in every field, especially with the collapsing economy,” Zhvania said while addressing the new conference.