The ruling Georgian Dream party has submitted amendments to the Election Code that would allow Georgian citizens to vote in parliamentary elections only on Georgian territory. Parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili described the initiative as a technical clarification and argued that voters living abroad are especially vulnerable to external political and informational influence.
In the 2024 parliamentary election, the ruling party, according to the official results, lost to the opposition in major cities and almost everywhere abroad. It received 5.3% in Germany, 7% in the United States, 10.7% in France, 11.5% in the United Kingdom, and 22.2% in Greece. Of about 100,000 registered overseas voters, only 34,000 were able to cast ballots because just 67 polling stations were opened in 42 countries, mostly at consulates and embassies.
“Establishing voting only on the territory of Georgia increases the resilience of elections, reduces the influence of external actors, and ensures a more adequate, informed choice,” Papuashvili said.
Critics link the proposal to an effort to curb the influence of the diaspora, which is less likely to support the government. Political analyst Sergi Kapanadze compared the approach to practices in authoritarian states, while historian Dmitry Silakadze likened it to the disenfranchisement of “non-labor elements” in early Soviet Georgia. Former president Salome Zourabichvili called the move a sign of the country’s isolation and said the state has a duty to preserve ties with citizens who left.
Estimates suggest that between 1 million and 1.5 million Georgian citizens live abroad. Their remittances remain crucial to the economy: according to the National Bank, they totaled $3.4 billion in 2024, and reached $3 billion in January-October 2025. Emigrants and church representatives say that requiring people to return to Georgia to vote is unrealistic for many because of costs, visa issues, and migration restrictions.