Imprisoned former President of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, is initiating a pre-election campaign via his allies. The authorities suggest it might be declared illegal.

As reported by Novosti-Georgia, Sofi Dzhaparidze, a representative of the United National Movement party led by Saakashvili, announced that starting from August 22, they will launch a large-scale campaign on behalf of the former Georgian president to prepare for a change of power in the country.

Saakashvili had previously appointed Dzhaparidze as his spokesperson.

"Let's call this the beginning of the pre-election campaign," Dzhaparidze declared. She mentioned that as Saakashvili's representative, she plans to visit all regions of Georgia, meet with his supporters, and plan further actions.

The Human Rights Committee of the Georgian Parliament claims that Saakashvili does not have the right to conduct a pre-election campaign in Georgia as he is not a citizen.

The head of the committee, Mikheil Sajveladze, stated that the details of the announced campaign are unknown. It makes it difficult to determine whether it would violate the law, but "attempts by foreign citizens to interfere in politics are at the very least a display of disrespect for the legislation."

Saakashvili lost his Georgian citizenship at the end of 2015 after becoming a citizen of Ukraine.

The next parliamentary elections in Georgia are scheduled for 2024.

In early July, Saakashvili participated in a court session for the first time since February, online from the Vivamed clinic. He appeared exhausted, causing widespread resonance.

After this, Polish doctors were finally allowed to visit Saakashvili after a six-month delay. However, the penitentiary service stated that the Polish doctor had attempted to secretly take out Saakashvili's samples of materials.