The close cooperation between the ruling parties and the Patriarchate of Georgia is not strange to the Georgian reality. However, the sharp increase in the scale of manipulation of religious communities by the authorities, which ultimately culminated in the initiative to declare Orthodoxy as the state religion, makes the 2024 parliamentary elections sharply different from other elections held in Georgia since 2000.

In the last two years, the pseudo-religious-national sentiments in the rhetoric of Georgian Dream have strengthened so much that the ruling party has completely occupied the niche of the far-right wing, which is strongly pro-Russian. Like far-right groups, for the parliamentary elections of 2024, the authorities have put into political focus: pseudo-religious values, "family institution", gender and sexual identity issues, which is likely to divert attention from important issues for society.

Considering that the election campaign of Georgian Dream is unprecedentedly saturated with religious themes, which, in turn, is accompanied by benevolent steps from the Georgian Patriarchate, the threat of interference of religious organizations in the election campaign, which is prohibited by the Election Code of Georgia, has increased significantly.

The monitoring results show the support of the clergy to the authorities, which can be seen in the themes discussed with the parishioners, which are the main "message box" of the ruling team's pre-election campaign, namely:

• Discrediting the civil sector and the opposition
• The danger of being dragged into the war
• Anti-American and anti-European messages
• Protection of family values ​​and anti-LGBT propaganda.

According to the observations of the Democracy Research Center, clergymen attend the pre-election meetings of Georgian Dream and participate in election meetings and events of the Georgian Dream delegates.

As soon as the election campaign began, the visits of Georgian Dream leaders to Orthodox churches became intense. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze was particularly active in this regard, who addressed the parishioners gathered in Svetitskhoveli from the pulpit on October 14.

In addition to passing pseudo-religious laws, the ruling team is also trying to gain the favour of the Orthodox Church and its parishioners by transferring state property and budget funds to the Patriarchate. On September 13, 2024, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze issued three decrees, according to which, the Patriarchate will receive three plots of land from the State; Two in the form of direct sales for GEL 1, and one - with the right to free mortgage, for a period of 99 years.

Another political force openly supported by the clergy is the openly pro-Russian far-right political party - Alliance of Patriots, which is running in the parliamentary elections together with the pro-Kremlin Conservative Movement/Alt-Info. In addition to attending gatherings, the clergy are also blessing the regional offices of the mentioned political force.

During one of his sermons, archpriest Basil Akhvlediani directly and openly called on the parishioners to support the Conservative Movement/Alt-Info and said: "Alt-info guys are a phenomenon in our country. They preach the truth and they only need our support. In the backstage, we tell each other that we will all vote for number 8 in the elections, but we avoid expressing it publicly. We must remember that this kind of situation is not normal."

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According to the Election Code of Georgia, religious organizations do not have the right to carry out pre-election agitation or participate in agitation. Agitation implies not only an active call made in support of or against an election subject, but also certain actions, including participation in the organization/holding of pre-election events.[1] Accordingly, the attendance of priests at election events can be considered agitation.

From a formal point of view, priests (regardless of their authority or degree of influence) enjoy freedom of expression and are not prohibited from participating in the pre-election campaign. The legal ban applies only to religious organizations and their official representatives. However, such an explanation cannot ensure the achievement of the goal of the legislator or the creation of a free election environment.

The Democracy Research Center calls on the authorities to refrain from manipulating religious issues and, in the spirit of respect for the Georgian Patriarchate and Georgian legislation, ensure the neutrality of the clergy during the pre-election campaign.