The “Shame Movement” initiated the “2024 – with 2% threshold” campaign one year ahead of the parliamentary elections. The primary objective of the campaign is to increase awareness among diverse segments of society regarding the necessity for a low entry barrier in the country and to mobilize them accordingly.
The organization holds the belief that fostering a diverse parliament is a crucial advancement for the country in mitigating political polarization. Implementing the 2% electoral threshold presents us with the opportunity to cultivate political pluralism, mitigate the risk of domination by narrow political factions, and align ourselves more closely with European democracies.
As a component of the campaign, the movement crafted a petition titled “Support a lower electoral threshold!” and persists in disseminating information to the populace through various communication channels.
The initial acknowledgment of the 2% electoral threshold surfaced in a document authored by Charles Michel, where political parties reached consensus that, in response to the political crisis in 2020, upcoming parliamentary elections would embrace full proportionality, Furthermore, the threshold for the subsequent two parliamentary elections was set to transition from natural to 2%.
In August 2021, “Georgian Dream” declared the annulment of the April 19 agreement. Nonetheless, the ruling party pledged to reduce the threshold to a minimum of 2%. In September 2021, the Parliament endorsed the amendment for parliamentary elections to incorporate a 2% threshold at the first hearing. During this period, the opposition also endorsed the constitutional amendment, although the second and third hearings were not conducted.
During a special briefing in July 2022, Irakli Kobakhidze, the chairman of “Georgian Dream,” stated that the 2024 elections would feature a 2% threshold if the country obtained candidate status in December. In 2022, Georgia received a promise of candidate status along with 12 recommendations, and in November 2023, the European Commission issued a positive assessment. The ruling party has ceased discussions regarding lowering the threshold.