NDI’s poll shows that 45% of respondents think that Gov’t is responsible for June 20-21 events

By Nika Gamtsemlidze

Friday, January 17

Tbilisi mayor Kakha Kaladze has the most positive rating, with 13% assessing his work as very positive

The survey was carried out for NDI by CRRC Georgia

President Zourabichvili has the lowest rating, with only 1% assessing her work as very positive

The presentation of Public Attitudes in Georgia, a research done by the National Democratic Institute (NDI), was held in hotel Radisson yesterday. According to NDI, the average margin of error is +/- 1.9%.

The question on the poll was mostly about the current situation of Georgia, including politics, and media freedom.

According to the results, the country is going in the wrong direction. Only 19% of the population thinks that the country is heading in the right direction, while 24% think that nothing is changing in the country.

According to the NDI Public Opinion Survey, the government's favorable ratings have deteriorated significantly. 64% of the respondents rated the government's performance as poor. Only 30% of the respondents favorably assess the government's activities.

As for the institutions, the Georgian Army deserved the best rating according to the NDI survey. Overall, 52% of the respondents favorably evaluate the army. It is followed by the Georgian Orthodox Church, with a positive rating of 50%. 43% of the respondents positively assessed the work of the police.

As for the court and parliament, the authors of the study say that their performance is extremely deteriorating. Only 10-10% of respondents rate their work positively.

From the leaders of the government, Tbilisi mayor Kakha Kaladze deserves the most positive rating, with 13% assessing his work as very positive, and 31% - positive.

He is followed by Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, he is rated 4% very positive and 17% positive. President Zourabichvili has a very good rating of 1% and a good rating of 8%.

In terms of attitude towards politicians, the Chairman of the Georgian Dream Bidzina Ivanishvili and President Salome Zourabichvili have the most negative attitude of society. 49-49% rated their activities negatively.

MP, Eka Beselia, is followed by a 41% negative rating. 39-39% have a negative attitude towards ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili and the leader of the party Girchi, Zurab Japaridze.

According to NDI opinion polls, if parliamentary elections were to take place tomorrow, the majority of respondents (20%) would support the ruling Georgian Dream.

13% said they would support the United National Movement in the elections. 8% - European Georgia, they are followed by the Labor Party with 5%. 4% said they would vote for the Patriots Alliance, and 2% said they would support Girchi.

According to the NDI Public Opinion Survey, when asked who is primarily responsible for the violence that took place on June 20, 45% of respondents think the government is responsible. 12% of the respondents see the opposition as responsible for the June 20 rallies.

4% of the people say that Giorgi Gakharia is responsible for the events, while in the survey of July twice as many respondents blamed him for the events.

25% fewer people rate church activity as positive compared to April 2015, with a sharp 14% drop starting in July 2019.

As the poll reads, 1.5 times more people trust the Main Channel than Rustavi 2. Last year, in April, 28% of people trusted the information of Rustavi 2, but after the journalists left it for the Main Channel, its trust rate has declined to 12%. The Main Channel has gained the trust of 18 percent of the public.

According to a poll conducted by NDI, most of the respondents, 30%, trust Imedi TV.

NDI and CRRC-Georgia conducted a survey throughout Georgia (excluding occupied territories) from November 19 to December 13, 2019. 2180 people participated in the study.