Parliamentary elections in Georgia will be held on October 26, 2024, for the first time, with a fully proportional system. The results of this vote will be extremely important, which will potentially determine the trajectory of Georgia's integration into the European Union and the North Atlantic structures in the coming years, - it is noted in the document, which was sent to the European Parliament by the member of the European Parliament Research Service, Anna Caprile.

According to the document, the environment of the election campaign in Georgia is becoming increasingly tense and polarized.

"Georgian Dream party, which has been in power since 2012, and is led by the party's founder and billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, calls the elections a choice between "peace and war". Meanwhile, the opposition calls the elections a choice between the democratic West and authoritarian Russia. Polls give conflicting results, but those considered more reliable predict that no party will be able to form the government independently, and it will be necessary to form a coalition," the document states.

The author of the document notes that Georgia's EU candidate status was granted on December 14, 2023, on the condition that the country would make progress in nine key areas, however, since then, the ruling party has adopted several legislative acts that are against the values ​​of the European Union and hinder the continuation of accession negotiations.

"Recent amendments to the Georgian election law were criticized by both international and local organizations. The commission is likely to adopt the 2024 enlargement package in the coming weeks, which will assess the progress of the candidate countries, including Georgia," the document states.

The author notes that the elections will be closely monitored by local and international observers, including a long-term observation mission from the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the Security Organization.