Georgia's new parliament met for its first session since the Moscow-friendly Georgian Dream party won elections last month that ignited calls for fresh polls amid accusations the balloting was rigged, as protesters gathered outside and pelted the building with eggs.
Opposition lawmakers boycotted the session on November 25 after calling on foreign diplomats not to legitimize the new parliament by attending the first session.
EU and other Western officials have expressed serious doubts about the October 26 elections in which Georgian Dream officially won 53.9 percent of the vote.
The first item on the agenda for the opening session, which will be attended by the head of the Central Election Commission (CEC), is recognizing the authority of all 150 parliament members. Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, however, has refused to recognize the result validated by the CEC.
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Protests In Tbilisi Ahead Of First Session Of Newly Elected Parliament
Zurabishvili has filed a lawsuit in the Constitutional Court "requesting annulment of the election results as unconstitutional."
Protesters allege there was widespread fraud during the campaign and vote and that Russia heavily influenced the outcome favoring Georgian Dream, which has been in power since 2012. They gathered outside the parliament but were not able to block the entrance amid a heavy police presence.
"Black Monday in Georgia: Police...guarding the doors behind which 'Georgian Dream slaves' are killing our Constitution and making a mockery of our Parliament," Zurabishvili said in a post on X.
Police have moved quickly -- sometimes using violence -- to shut down previous demonstrations, but no altercations were reported on November 25.
Georgian Dream's billionaire founder and "honorary chairman," Bidzina Ivanishvili, attended the session and holds the right to nominate a prime minister.
Ivanishvili, who is widely regarded as dominating the government even though he does not hold an official position, is expected to push for MPs to approve current Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze to continue as head of the government.
Georgia has been a candidate for EU membership since last year, but a "foreign influence" law and anti-LGBT measures enacted under Georgian Dream's leadership have stalled that effort.
The United States in July announced it would pause more than $95 million in assistance to the Georgian government, warning that it was backsliding on democracy.