Alliance of Patriots of Georgia

The Alliance of Patriots of Georgia (Georgian: საქართველოს პატრიოტთა ალიანსი, Sakartvelos Patriotta Aliansi, APG) is a self-defined centre-right, conservative, pro-Russian[5][6][7] opposition party in the republic of Georgia.[8] It was founded in 2012 by leaders from the Resistance Movement and its platform includes anti-Western positions.[9] The party currently supports European integration, it supports Christian and democratic values, and the party demonstrates itself as a moderate-conservative party.[4] The party campaigned against the building of a mosque in Adjara, saying “Turkey has too much influence in Georgia,” so it has been accused of Anti-Turkism.[1] The party favours closer ties with both Russia and the European Union.[1]

Alliance of Patriots of Georgia

საქართველოს პატრიოტთა ალიანსი
ChairmanDavit Tarkhan Mouravi
Secretary-GeneralIrma Inashvili
Founded2012
HeadquartersTbilisi, Georgia
IdeologyNational conservatism
Social conservatism[1]
Right-wing populism[1]
Christian democracy[2][3]
Russophilia
Anti-Turkish sentiment
Political positionCentre-right[4] to
right-wing[1]
Colours    Red, Gold
Seats in Parliament
4 / 150
Seats In The Supreme Council Of Adjara
1 / 21
Seats In Tbilisi Sakrebulo
2 / 50
Website
http://patriots.ge/

In the 2014 local elections, it gained an aggregate vote nationwide of 4.6%, exceeding the 4% threshold required to qualify as a political party for government funding. Through party-list voting in 47 cities, it won proportional seat representation on the local councils of 30 municipalities, including Tbilisi.[10]

In June 2016, the party formed a bloc with five other parties (Free Georgia, led by Kakha Kukava; Tavisupleba, led by Konstantine Gamsakhurdia; Union of Georgian Traditionalists, led by Akaki Asatiani; New Christian-Democrats, led by Gocha Jojua, and Political Movement of Law Enforcement and Armed Forces Veterans) for the scheduled 2016 parliamentary election,[11] finishing 3rd place in the proportional votе and just passing the electoral threshold of 5%.

History

The party was established in December 2012,[12] by founders including Soso Manjavidze, Davit Tarkhan-Mouravi and Irma Inashvili. Giorgi Lomia is political secretary.[10] The party leadership also includes former warlord Emzar Kvitsiani, a figure that has attracted significant controversy.[13] The Alliance party was based on the Resistance Movement, a group fiercely critical of the former ruling party, the United National Movement.

The Alliance of Patriots maintains anti-Turkish rhetoric, warning of Ankara's alleged designs on the Adjara region, has called for delaying free trade with the EU, and argues that the pursuit of NATO membership is fruitless, as NATO's leading members have themselves made clear that Georgia has little prospect of accession.[10]

The Alliance party has a television channel, Obieqtivi, run by Inashvili. Davit Tarkhan-Mouravi has a series on the channel in which he lectures on the Bible and Orthodox Christianity. A mathematician, he served in earlier administrations as "head of the state department for information technologies in the early 2000s, and as head of the customs department for several months in 2003."[10]

In the 2014 local elections, the Georgian Dream coalition, including the Republican Party, gained 50.80%; they have been leading the government since 2012. The UNM gained a nationwide party-list vote in 2014 of 22.41%. Nino Burjanadze and her United Opposition coalition gained the third best results in the local elections, with nationwide 10.22% in the party-list vote.[10] Burjanadze revived a Eurasianist rhetoric, which is supported by Russia, and the campaign was "fueled by massive influxes of what was likely Russian money."[8]

The Alliance of Patriots of Georgia party received 4.7% of the aggregate vote, meeting the required threshold of 4% to qualify as a political party, and making it eligible for future state funding for elections. It ran in a party-list contest for proportional Sakrebulo seats in 47 of a total of 71 municipalities and cities. In 30 jurisdictions, its party-list voting exceeded 4%, making it eligible for seats on 30 local councils, including that of Tbilisi.[10][14]

Inashvili finished fourth in the mayoral election in Tbilisi with 5.4% of the vote; the party won two seats in the Tbilisi City Assembly. In addition, Alliance of Patriots of Georgia mayoral candidates qualified for run-off elections against Georgian Dream (GD) candidates in the cities of Poti and Ozurgeti; and Alliance candidates qualified for second-round runoffs for municipal executives in the municipalities of Lanchkhuti and Khulo.[10]

In April, 2018, one of the leaders of the Party, Emzar Kvitsiani, publicly admitted working with Russian special services (notably with GRU) purposefully making false, erroneous and propagandistic statements on their behalf.[15]

Electoral performance
Election Leader Votes % Seats +/– Position Government
2016 Irma Inashvili 88,109 5.01
6 / 150
 new 3rd No
2020 Irma Inashvili 60,493 3.14
4 / 150
 2 6th No

References
  1. Kucera, Joshua (Oct 24, 2016). "Georgia: Disillusion with Establishment Fuels Rise of Populism". Eurasianet.
  2. "Our Party". Alliance of Patriots of Georgia.
  3. "Georgia's traditionalists form new coalition ahead of election". 2016-06-08.
  4. "Alliance of Patriots of Georgia". Political Party's Page.
  5. Pro-Russian party wins a toe-hold in Georgia's new parliament, Reuters
  6. Pro-Russian Parties in Georgia's 2016 Parliamentary Election: A Growing Footprint?
  7. Tbilisi: Pro-Russian party supporters demand Azerbaijan cede claim to ancient border monastery
  8. Cecire, Michael (March 9, 2015). "The Kremlin pulls on Georgia". Foreign Policy.
  9. Cecire, Michael (November 10, 2015). "Divide and conquer in Georgia". Foreign Affairs.
  10. "Local Elections Boost Alliance of Patriots' Ambitions for Parliamentary Polls" Archived 2016-10-13 at the Wayback Machine, Civil Georgia, 21 June 2014
  11. "Alliance of Patriots Forms 6-Party Bloc for Elections". Civil Georgia. 9 June 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
  12. Georgian Electoral Amendment Clears Early Hurdle, But Vote Concerns Persist Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 19 December 2015
  13. Fuller, Liz (January 28, 2015). "Georgian Court Releases Jailed Warlord". Radio Free Europe. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  14. Tom Lansford (2015) Political Handbook of the World 2015, CQ Press
  15. "Youtube".
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