**Georgian President Rejects Parliamentary Election Results, Calls for Mass Protests**

In a bold move, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili announced on October 27 that she will not accept the outcomes of the recent parliamentary elections, urging citizens to congregate and demonstrate en masse. According to Georgia's electoral commission, the pro-Russian Georgian Dream party secured a majority in the vote held on October 26. However, this result has been challenged by pro-European Union parties and European observers, who noted significant election irregularities and incidents of voter intimidation.

Speaking at a press conference reported by the Echo of the Caucasus, President Zourabichvili declared, "I do not recognize these elections. These elections cannot be recognized. This is the same as recognizing Georgia's subordination to Russia... No one can take away Georgia's European future." She characterized the election as a "total falsification" and labeled it a "Russian special operation," calling on citizens to join her at Tbilisi's Freedom Square to protest the alleged election fraud.

The president's plea for unity and protest has found resonance with other political leaders. Former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, now an opposition figure, asserted that the election outcomes "do not reflect the will of the Georgian people" and emphasized the necessity of "reasonable forms of protest" to "defend the European future" of Georgia.

The Georgian Dream party, established by oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, has been accused of steering the country closer to Moscow and obstructing its European integration aspirations. The recent adoption of a controversial foreign agents law in Tbilisi has led the European Union to freeze Georgia's EU accession process, despite granting it candidate status in December of the previous year. Additionally, the party has announced plans to seek a constitutional ban on the United National Movement (UNM), a principal opposition party, and other opposition groups.

Following the October 26 election, opposition factions denounced the results as stolen and referred to the reports from European election observers, which documented various election violations such as ballot stuffing and voter intimidation. Ioan Bulai, head of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) delegation, noted instances of vote-buying, double voting, and an intimidating atmosphere created by the ruling party's presence at polling stations.

Despite these controversies, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze indicated on October 27 that the Georgian parliament will proceed to approve the government, regardless of the opposition protests.