TBILISI, July 4 – Georgia’s largest opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), is heading into a new leadership fight, with jailed former president Mikheil Saakashvili publicly recommending four younger party figures.
Tina Bokuchava’s two-year term as UNM chair officially expires next week, but according to Rezonansi, the party has not yet named official candidates or announced a congress date.
Against that background, Saakashvili has again weighed in on the party’s future. In a new statement, he said one of UNM’s biggest achievements in recent years has been attracting strong young people.
“They are not burdened by the past weight of being in government,” Saakashvili wrote, naming Levan Sanikidze, Irakli Pavlenishvili, Lasha Parulava and Igor Narmania.
The comment has triggered new speculation about whether Saakashvili wants the party to bring younger faces into its leadership, and whether one or more of the four could become candidates for chair.
The issue is sensitive because Saakashvili had earlier publicly suggested journalist Nanuka Zhorzholiani as a future party chair. That idea was met with sharp negative reaction from some UNM leaders, and discussion of Zhorzholiani’s candidacy appeared to fade.
At the same time, current chair Tina Bokuchava and party figure Ana Tsitlidze have not ruled out running themselves.
On June 30, Tsitlidze presented an internal party reform plan called “electronic reform, for more popular participation and internal democracy.” According to UNM, the plan is a new concept for organizational development, aimed at opening the party, increasing transparency and involving members and supporters more actively in decision-making.
Tsitlidze, Pavlenishvili, Sanikidze, Giorgi Baramidze and other party members attended the presentation. Bokuchava was not present, Rezonansi reported.
Analyst Nika Chitadze told Rezonansi that UNM will most likely hold primaries to choose leadership candidates. He said the party has experience with primaries and that the congress date may become known soon.
Chitadze said he believes Zhorzholiani and Bokuchava will be candidates, and that Tsitlidze may also put herself forward.
He argued that Zhorzholiani’s candidacy has not collapsed, despite possible resistance inside the party. In his view, Zhorzholiani has authority among opposition-minded voters, including some who do not currently support UNM.
Asked whether Saakashvili’s latest statement means he wants to replace old party figures with new ones, Chitadze said he saw it more as an attempt to add young people than to remove older leaders.
He said older UNM figures who have contributed to the party should continue the fight, while younger figures such as Sanikidze, Pavlenishvili, Narmania and Parulava could add energy.
Chitadze also said it is possible that one or more of the four names praised by Saakashvili could become leadership candidates, but added that he did not know exactly what was happening behind the scenes.
