Alliance for Georgia gave its firm no to a proposal of holding preliminary elections or “primaries” among the opposition parties to select a single opposition candidate for Tbilisi mayoral race.

“Holding of the primaries in the current situation contains multiple dangers and will be used for [stirring] confrontation among the opposition parties,” the three-party alliance, involving New Rights, Republicans and Our Georgia-Free Democrats, said in a statement on December 30.

The Alliance leader Irakli Alasania was the first opposition leader to announce about the intention to run for the Tbilisi mayoral office in the local elections planned for May, 2010. The Alliance named former public defender, Sozar Subari, as a candidate for the City Council chairmanship.

Conservative Party, Party of People and former PM Zurab Nogaideli’s Movement for Fair Georgia are currently actively lobbying among the opposition parties to hold the primaries – the idea which has not been embraced by most of the parties.

Zviad Dzidziguri of the Conservative Party and Koba Davitashvili, leader of the Party of People, have already announced about their intentions to run for Tbilisi mayor.

The Alliance for Georgia said in the statement that it was in favor of selecting a single candidate, but also said that the single candidate should be selected through negotiations between the opposition parties, instead of holding the primaries.