Mikheil Kavelashvili facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mikheil Kavelashvili
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| მიხეილ ყაველაშვილი | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kavelashvili in 2014
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| 6th President of Georgia (Disputed) |
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| Assumed office 29 December 2024 (Disputed) |
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| Prime Minister | Irakli Kobakhidze | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Salome Zourabichvili | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Member of the Parliament of Georgia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 18 November 2016 – 10 December 2024 |
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| Born | 22 July 1971 Bolnisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union |
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| Political party | Independent (2024–present) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other political affiliations |
Georgian Dream (2016–2022) People's Power (2022–2024) |
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| Spouse | Tamar Bagrationi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation |
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Mikheil Kavelashvili (Georgian: მიხეილ ყაველაშვილი born 22 July 1971) is a Georgian politician and former professional footballer who was installed as the 6th President of Georgia on 29 December 2024. His election was boycotted and disputed by the opposition, as well as some of the international community. He was the sole candidate on the ballot.
As a football player, he was a striker who notably played in the English Premier League for Manchester City and in the Swiss Super League for a range of clubs. He also played for Dinamo Tbilisi and Spartak Vladikavkaz. He was capped 46 times by the Georgian national football team, scoring nine goals.
Kavelashvili was first elected to parliament in the 2016 election representing the ruling Georgian Dream party. In 2022, he co-founded People's Power, a satellite party of Georgian Dream. He was nominated as the candidate for the presidency of Georgia in November 2024, although the powers of the president have been substantially limited following the 2017 Georgian constitutional reform which transformed the country into a parliamentary republic. His election as president was assessed as "illegitimate" by the opposition, his predecessor Salome Zourabichvili, watchdog organizations and constitutional experts. It was the first time in Georgia's independent history that voters were given only one choice during a presidential election.
Football career
As with many leading Georgian players, Kavelashvili began his career with Dinamo Tbilisi, emerging from their youth system in 1989. A striker, he soon established himself in the Dinamo side before earning a move to Russian club Spartak Vladikavkaz in 1995. He won the Russian Premier League during his year at the club from North Ossetia–Alania.
Kavelashvili began training with Manchester City on 1 March 1996, before finally joining the club on 28 March, which was transfer deadline day. He was recommended to manager Alan Ball by compatriot Georgi Kinkladze, who had joined for £2 million in the summer. The Kavelashvili deal, which was worth £1.4 million, took several weeks due to the player requiring a work permit. He made his City debut on 6 April by scoring in the Manchester derby game against Manchester United, and totalled 4 games and 1 goal in the Premier League as City were relegated.
Following City's relegation, Kavelashvili played 24 games (two goals) in the Football League First Division. The number was not enough to secure a renewal of his work permit, and he was sent out on loan to Grasshoppers, winning a Swiss Super League in 1998. He then played the majority of his football in Switzerland, featuring for Zürich, Luzern, Sion and Aarau. Aarau loaned him out to Vladikavkaz in autumn 2004, but he returned to Switzerland after playing just seven games.
Kavelashvili joined Basel's first team during their 2005–06 season under head coach Christian Gross, who was behind Grasshoppers' league win in 1998. Kavelashvili played his domestic league debut for the club in the home game in the St. Jakob-Park on 12 March 2006 as he was substituted in the 66th minute; he scored the only goal of the win over Grasshoppers. Basel had started the season well and were joint leaders of the championship with Zürich right until the last day of the league campaign, when they lost the title on goal difference.
Kavelashvili had ten appearances for FCB in his first season and in each he had been used as a substitute. In his second season, he made seven appearances, again each as substitute, but the club released him before the winter break, and he retired from his active football career. During his period with the club, he played a total of 17 games (three in the UEFA Cup) and scored 4 goals.
With the Georgia national team, he won the 1998 Malta International Football Tournament.
Political career
In 2016, he was elected as a member of Parliament of Georgia for the Georgian Dream party. He was re-elected in 2020. He left Georgian Dream in 2022 and co-founded the People's Power party. In the 2024 parliamentary election he was elected for the third time via the party list of Georgian Dream, which People's Power had joined.
Kavelashvili has made unsubstantiated accusations that the political opposition in Georgia are being controlled by US congressmen with "an insatiable desire to destroy our country".
Presidential election
On 27 November 2024, Georgian Dream nominated Kavelashvili as its candidate for the presidency of Georgia in the election on 14 December 2024. In his nomination speech, he accused outgoing president Salome Zourabichvili of violating the constitution. As the sole candidate Kavelashvili received 224 out of 225 votes of the 300-member electoral college and was proclaimed the next president, with a scheduled inauguration on 29 December 2024. The opposition described the election process as "illegitimate" and boycotted the vote.
The election of Kavelashvili as president was widely disputed and regarded as illegitimate, by the opposition, outgoing president Salome Zourabichvili, watchdog organizations and Georgian constitutional experts. This was largely based on allegations of electoral fraud associated with the parliamentary election, which took place seven weeks prior, which undermined the legitimacy of parliament and therefore the electoral college.
The allegations of electoral fraud triggered widespread protests and contributed to a broader political crisis in the country. Salome Zourabichvili, along with opposition parties and the majority of civil society, continued to assert her recognition as the legitimate President of Georgia. Kavelashvili was the second former professional football player to be elected as a country's president, following the election of George Weah as President of Liberia from 2018 to 2024.
On 13 February 2025, the European Parliament passed a resolution stating that the European Union does not recognize Kavelashvili as the legitimate president of Georgia.
Family
His wife is Tamar Bagrationi (born 1971), sister of singer Liza Bagrationi (born 1974).
He has 4 children:
- Mariam Kavelashvili, born 26 September 1996, in Manchester, England;
- Guram Kavelashvili, born 18 August 2001, in Zurich, Switzerland;
- Elizabeth Kavelashvili, born 22 March 2013, in Tbilisi, Georgia;
- Giorgi Ivanishvili (stepchild), born 18 October 1989, in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Honours
Dinamo Tbilisi
- Umaglesi Liga: 1990, 1994, 1995
Vladikavkaz
- Russian Premier League: 1995
Grasshoppers
- Swiss Super League: 1998
See also
In Spanish: Míjeil Kavelashvili para niños
