Mikheil Kavelashvili has become the new president of Georgia, as the sole candidate nominated by the ruling Georgian Dream party. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze congratulated Kavelashvili and criticized President Salome Zurabishvili,

Mikhail Kavelashvili, a representative of the Georgian Dream Party, has been elected President of Georgia. This was stated by the CEC of Georgia.

Salome Zurabishvili, the President of Georgia, sharply criticized the presidential elections planned for Saturday. The elections are to be conducted by an electoral college, and the sole candidate is Mikheil Kavelashvili from the Georgian Dream party,

Georgia's ruling party on Saturday voted for a far-right former footballer to become president in a controversial election process, amid a deepening constitutional crisis and weeks of mass pro-EU protests.

Mikheil Kavelashvili was the only candidate on the ballot and easily won the vote given the Georgian Dream party’s control of a 300-seat electoral college.

The country's opposition have said recent political upheaval has been a blow to the country’s European aspirations and a victory for its former imperial ruler, Russia.

The four largest opposition forces in Georgia have appealed to the European Union against the backdrop of the approval of the Georgian Dream candidate and ex-footballer Mikheil Kavelashvili as the new president.

Former soccer player Mikheil Kavelashvili became president of Georgia on Saturday, as the ruling party tightened its grip in what the opposition calls a blow to the country’s EU aspirations and a victory for former imperial ruler Russia.

The President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, came out to the protesters who gathered on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, protesting against the parliament's approval of Mikheil Kavelashvili as the new president.