UNM’s Party List of MP Candidates
Civil Georgia, Tbilisi / 9 Sep.'16 / 17:25

Below is first 50 MP candidates on opposition United National Movement’s party list, running in the October 8 parliamentary elections under the proportional system:

  1. MP Davit Bakradze – leader of the UNM minority group in the outgoing parliament, who was UNM’s presidential candidate in 2013 elections garnering up to 22% of votes;
  2. Sandra Roelofs – wife of former President Mikheil Saakashvili, who is also a majoritarian MP candidate in Zugdidi municipality’s single-member district; she was not in UNM’s initial list of MP candidates and was included there in late August;
  3. Helen Khoshtaria – deputy state minister of European and Euro-Atlantic integration when the UNM was in government; she is a co-founder of Tbilisi-based think-tank Georgia’s Reforms Associates (GRASS);
  4. Roman Gotsiridze – he was president of the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) in 2005-2007 and then served as economic adviser to then President Mikheil Saakashvili;
  5. Nika Melia – chief of UNM’s election campaign; he was UNM’s mayoral candidate in 2014 local elections in Tbilisi, receiving up to 28% of votes;
  6. Giorgi Tugushi – he chaired Tbilisi-based human rights watchdog group Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI) before joining UNM this year; he served as Public Defender since 2009 before becoming minister in charge of the prison system in late September, 2012;
  7. Otar Kakhidze – he served at various positions in the Ministry of Justice since 2009 and was Deputy Justice Minister for few months before UNM was defeated in the 2012 parliamentary elections; he is a lawyer and a partner in Tbilisi-based law firm BGI Legal;
  8. Salome Samadashvili – Georgia’s ambassador to the EU in 2005-2013;
  9. Irakli Abesadze – a member of the Tbilisi City Council (Sakrebulo) from the UNM party and a former vice-mayor of Tbilisi;
  10. Sergi Kapanadze – he was Deputy Foreign Minister from early 2009 till October, 2012; after quitting public service, he co-founded GRASS think tank with Helene Khoshtaria;
  11. MP Sergo Ratiani – UNM’s executive secretary;
  12. MP Giorgi Kandelaki;
  13. Lela Keburia – a former head of the Education Ministry’s resource center in Zugdidi;
  14. MP Akaki Bobokhidze;
  15. Giga Bokeria – UNM’s foreign secretary; Georgia’s deputy foreign minister in 2008-2010, and National Security Council secretary in 2010-2013;
  16. MP Koba Nakopia;
  17. MP Irma Nadirashvili;
  18. Mamuka Chikovani;
  19. MP Tinatin Bokuchava;
  20. MP Ramaz Nikolaishvili;
  21. Zurab Tchiaberashvili, who is also a majoritarian MP candidate in Sagarejo single-mandate constituency; he was Georgia’s ambassador to Switzerland and then served as healthcare minister and governor of Kakheti region under ex-President Saakashvili’s administration;
  22. Lasha Damenia – head of UNM’s regional branch in Zugdidi;
  23. MP Khatuna Gogorishvili;
  24. Tengiz Gunava – former chief of police in Samegrelo region and ex-governor of the same region during Mikheil Saakashvili’s presidency;
  25. MP Zaza Kedelashvili;
  26. MP Azer Suleimanov;
  27. MP Gigi Tsereteli;
  28. MP Giorgi Gviniashvili;
  29. Nino Kalandadze – director of the Tbilisi-based Saakashvili Presidential Library; she was deputy foreign minister in 2008-2012;
  30. MP Omar Megrelidze;
  31. Arsen Karapetian – former chief of police in Ninotsminda;
  32. MP Mikheil Machavariani;
  33. Ex-MP Badri Basishvili;
  34. MP Zurab Chilingarashvili;
  35. MP Eka Kherkheulidze;
  36. MP Levan Tarkhnishvili;
  37. Dimitri Dzagnidze – a lawyer who was deputy head of presidential administration and president’s parliamentary secretary in 2012-2013;
  38. Davit Gogokhia – activist from UNM-affiliated group Free Zone;
  39. Levan Korjakhia – member of Zugdidi’s city council (Sakrebulo);
  40. Mamuka Sagareishvili – member of local council in Tskaltubo;
  41. Sophio Siukaeva – member of local council in Terjola;
  42. Nino Kvitaishvili – former principal of a public school;
  43. MP Davit Darchiashvili;
  44. Khatuna Berdzenishvili – former head of Krtsanisi district in Tbilisi and former head of public TV’s newsroom;
  45. Lali Raminashvili – former principal of one of Tbilisi’s public schools;
  46. Besik Kvitsiani – head of UNM’s local branch in Tbilisi’s Isani district;
  47. Beso Tserediani – former official from the ministry in charge of IDPs;
  48. Zviad Dushmanashvili – member of local council in Kvareli;
  49. Konstantine Mikeladze;
  50. Gevork Shushanian;

In Georgia’s mixed electoral system 77 seats in 150-member Parliament are allocated proportionally under the party-list contest among the parties and election blocs, which clear 5% threshold in nationwide popular vote.

Rest of the 73 MPs are elected in 73 single-member districts, known as “majoritarian” mandates; a majoritarian MP candidate has to win over 50% of votes in order to be an outright winner in the first round, otherwise a second round should be held no later than 25 days after the first round.

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