Georgia’s ruling party has nominated Mikheil Kavelashvili, a former Manchester City footballer turned ultranationalist firebrand, as its presidential candidate to replace the pro-EU incumbent.
Kavelashvili’s expected confirmation by parliament next month would spell the end of Georgia’s last independent political institution, which has been plunged into political crisis after a fiercely contested election in October.
The serving president Salome Zourabichvili was initially elected with the nationalist Georgian Dream’s backing, but later became one of the ruling party’s strongest critics. She later emerged as one of the leaders of a nationwide protest movement over alleged election rigging.