After 17 days of pro-EU protests sweeping across the country, Georgia’s disputed parliament has appointed former Manchester City footballer Mikheil Kavelashvili as president.
Kavelashvili, 53, a former MP from the increasingly authoritarian ruling Georgian Dream party, was the sole candidate for the position.
On Saturday, 224 out of 225 members of Georgia’s electoral college voted in favor of Kavelashvili. However, the four main opposition groups have rejected his appointment and boycotted parliament, claiming that the October elections were rigged.
Despite freezing temperatures, large crowds of protesters gathered outside parliament from the early hours of Saturday morning ahead of the vote. Georgia’s outgoing pro-Western president, Salome Zourabichvili, condemned Kavelashvili’s election as a travesty, asserting that she holds Georgia’s only remaining legitimate institution.
