“There is concrete information, including fairly reliable leaks from inside Georgian Dream that often surface, as well as the specific political and administrative steps they are taking. For example, majoritarian MPs who used to be in local councils are still, to this day, running what looks exactly like an election campaign: meeting voters constantly, something they haven’t done in the 13 years they’ve been in power. I don’t believe their assignment is simply ‘to stay close to the people.’ They never exited campaign mode; they are continuing the campaign.

There is concrete information that Georgian Dream needs this and intends to call snap parliamentary elections in 2026. If that happens, these will be the toughest, dirtiest, most unfair and non-competitive elections imaginable. Nevertheless, our attitude toward elections is very clear: we must use every process and every opportunity. Every decision about participation or boycott must be based on what outcome that participation or boycott will bring.

Participation unequivocally depends on several variables. The first is whether they ban us as a political party. The decision has to be made once the elections are actually called; you have to face the facts as they stand. We are preparing to be in good shape for any moment. As for whether the arrest of our leaders will affect that decision – simply put, it will not affect us,” Irakli Kupradze, Secretary General of “Lelo for Strong Georgia,” said on PalitraNews program “360 Degrees.”