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Ex-Manchester City striker Mikheil Kavelashvili set to be Georgia’s new far-right president

The former Georgian footballer is known for his expletive-laden parliament speeches and tirades against government critics and LGBTQ people

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Mikheil Kavelashvili, who co-founded the People’s Power party, was picked by the governing Georgian Dream party as loyalist. Photo: Reuters

Georgian ex-footballer turned far-right politician Mikheil Kavelashvili is set to become Tbilisi’s next figurehead president in an indirect election denounced as “illegitimate” by the current pro-EU leader.

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Picked by the governing Georgian Dream party as a loyalist, the former forward for the English Premier League’s Manchester City is known for his expletive-laden parliament speeches and tirades against government critics and LGBTQ people.

He is expected to be voted into the role by an electoral college controlled by Georgian Dream, after the party abolished the use of popular votes to elect the president under controversial constitutional changes passed in 2017.

Kavelashvili being catapulted to the role comes at a dramatic moment as thousands of anti-government protesters have flooded Tbilisi for weeks, furious at Georgian Dream for shelving EU accession talks.

Protesters have described Kavelashvili as a “puppet” of billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgian Dream’s founder, who in turn has called him “the embodiment of a Georgian man”.

Mikhail Kavelashvili (left) playing for Georgia against Norway in a Euro 2000 qualifier. Photo: AFP
Mikhail Kavelashvili (left) playing for Georgia against Norway in a Euro 2000 qualifier. Photo: AFP

Sporting a moustache and combed back hair, his comments on LGBTQ people have raised alarm, as Georgian Dream has adopted Kremlin-style laws curbing their rights.

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