Page 11 - GEORptFeb21

2.7​ ​Polls & Sociology
Post election sentiment deteriorates in Georgia
The percentage of Georgians believing that the country is moving in the wrong direction increased to 38% in December, following the general election, from 32% in August, according to a poll released by the National Democratic Institute. However, the percentage stood at 53% in November 2019.
Some 45% of the polled Georgians stated that Georgia is a democracy, down from 48% in August, but up from 33% in November 2019. A total of 42% did not agree with this statement, up from 37% in August but down from 59% in November 2019.
Exactly 50% of Georgians rated the performance of the government as good (up from 30% in November 2019; no figure was given for August 2020), while 38% rated it as bad (down from 64%).
Notably, the polling methodology used has changed since November 2019; namely, the poll was conducted over the phone, contrasting with the face-to-face approach conducted in the November 2019 survey and before that.
Opposition politician Mamuka Khazaradze argued against the outcome quality of telephone polls, given the broad sentiment among Georgians that their phones are wiretapped.
“A total of 54% of respondents did not name which party they support. It is a clear example of people being scared to express their opinion on the phone. That's a fact. We believe that in this country ‘they’ listen [to the phones], we know that people are scared—this is the sad reality. I do not doubt the qualifications of this organisation [that did the polling], I just doubt the other side—the situation of our population," said Khazaradze.
Khazaradze pointed to the 5% support expressed by respondents for the National Union Movement opposition party, compared to the party’s 27% score in the general election.
He said he agreed with the part of the study that stated that the involvement of all elected parties in the activities of the parliament is important.
"I fully agree with this part of the poll. Parliament exists because political parties cooperate and change the agenda in parliament. It was just not a question of whether the opposition should enter the parliament where the government rigged the elections. Should political parties be represented in parliament? Of course they should be and we want that too," Khazaradze said. The opposition parties are boycotting the legislature, claiming the general election was rigged in favour of Georgian Dream.
11​ GEORGIA Country Report​ February 2021 ​ ​www.intellinews.com