Two non-parliamentary opposition parties, Democratic Movement – United Georgia and Free Georgia, have named their joint candidates for mayoral elections and municipal council (Sakrebulo) chairmanship.

Kakha Kukava, leader of Free Georgia party, will enter the mayoral race in Tbilisi, while Dimitri Lortkipanidze of Democratic Movement – United Georgia will compete for Tbilisi’s 50-member Sakrebulo chairmanship.

The two candidates were presented by Nino Burjanadze, former parliamentary speaker and leader of Democratic Movement – United Georgia, at a special news briefing on August 21.

“Local elections are very important for Georgia’s future, because these elections and real changes should be the beginning of the end of informal rule of Bidzina Ivanishvili [ex-Prime Minister]. It is vitally important for the country,” Burjanadze said at the news briefing.

“I hope that at least this time the public will make right conclusions and will make a choice in favor of those political forces, who put their personal and partisan interests aside in order to let the population support the opposition’s joint candidate,” Burjanadze noted.

She also said that the two “very dignified” persons would do their utmost to serve Tbilisites. “This unity is very important,” she added. 

Total of seven candidates have already been nominated for the mayoral elections in Tbilisi.

Besides the today’s nominee, Tbilisi voters will have to make their choice from the following candidates: Kakha Kaladze of the Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia; Zaal Udumashvili of the United National Movement; Elene Khoshtaria of the Movement for Liberty - European Georgia; Tengiz Shergelashvili of the Development Movement, Irma Inashvili of Alliance of Patriots and Aleko Elisashvili nominated by an independent initiative group.