Javakheti, Georgia, Oct. 26: When Vahan Agayan goes to the polling station in Georgia’s parliamentary election Saturday, he says he and his wife will vote as directed to by officials of the ruling Georgian Dream party. Agayan has a sheep farm near the border with Armenia and Turkey, 135 kilometres (83 miles) west of — and a world away from — the Georgian capital, Tbilisi.
There, tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in a pre-election demonstration in favour of joining the European Union. But in the mountainous Javakheti region, what Agayan wants most is stability. A few years ago, wolves got into his barn and killed half the sheep, almost destroying the livelihoods of dozens of families.
For Agayan, the EU is far away; what matters are the local leaders who have the power to make or break small farmers like him. “Most people” will vote for the regional lawmaker from Georgian Dream, he said. “An old dog is always better than a new one,” he said, suggesting a change in power could be unpredictable.
Many in this South Caucasus country of 3.7 million people believe the election will be the most important of their lives, a pivotal vote on the chance to join the European Union. It pits a coalition of opposition parties against Georgian Dream, which has governed in an increasingly authoritarian fashion since 2012.
Polls indicate around 80% of Georgians favour joining the EU, and the constitution obliges leaders to pursue membership in both the bloc and NATO. In Ju.