Former footballer, conservative, anti-Western… who is Mikheil Kavelashvili, the new contested Georgian president ?

Mikheil Kavelashvili was sworn in to the Georgian Parliament this Sunday, December 29, 2024. He is known for his ultra-conservative and anti-Western positions. But who is he?

Georgia's new president, Mikheil Kavelashvili, a loyalist to the ruling party, was sworn in Sunday to succeed outgoing head of state and supporter of the pro-European opposition, Salome Zurabishvili.

He was sworn in at a short ceremony in parliament. A few minutes earlier, Ms. Zourabichvili had announced that she was leaving the presidential palace but still considered herself the “only legitimate president” of the country, promising to continue fighting against the ruling Georgian Dream party.

Political crisis

This event is part of a political crisis that has been going on for two months, marked by large-scale pro-European demonstrations.

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Kavelashvili is a far-right figure and known for his conservative and anti-Western positions. He was elected on December 14 by an electoral college dominated by the ruling Georgian Dream party. Georgian. He thus succeeds Zourabichvili.

Former footballer

A former football player, notably for Manchester City during the 1995-1996 season, Kavelashvili was born in Bolnisi, in the southwest of Georgia, reports BFMTV.

He also played in Switzerland before entering politics in 2016, where he was elected as a member of parliament. In 2022, he founded an anti-Western faction which, although independent, remains close to the Georgian Dream party.

In his speeches, he has accused the West of seeking to drag Georgia, already in conflict with Russia in 2008, into the war in Ukraine. At 53, Kavelashvili was elected president by parliament, despite protests.

His inauguration, marked by a closed-door ceremony, raised concerns because of his often vulgar speeches and his positions against the rights of LGBT+ people, which he considers a threat imposed by a “liberal fascism” coming from the West, details BFMTV.

He also put forward traditional Georgian values ​​and national identity.

Thousands of protesters

Thousands of pro-European protesters gathered Sunday afternoon in front of the Parliament in Tbilisi, Georgia, to denounce the inauguration of the new president.

Some of the protesters were brandishing red cards, an AFP journalist noted, a reference to his past as a footballer.