GEORGIA HAS INAUGURATED governing party loyalist Mikheil Kavelashvili as president this morning, despite his election being declared “illegitimate” by the outgoing leader and opposition groups.

The far-right former Manchester City footballer was sworn in at a parliamentary ceremony moments after outgoing president Salome Zurabishvili said she was the “only legitimate president” and vowed to fight on against the Georgian Dream party that controls parliament.

“I will leave the presidential palace and stand with you, carrying with me the legitimacy, the flag and your trust,” Zurabishvili told thousands of pro-EU demonstrators gathered in Tbilisi this morning.

At least 2,000 pro-EU protesters gathered in the Georgian capital to hear from current President Salome Zurabishvili, who has refused to step down when her term ends and demanded new elections.

The Georgian government is currently controlled by the governing Georgian Dream party, who won parliamentary elections in October, but the victory was mired in allegations of fraud which have since sparked several street protests.

Zurabishvili and protesters have accused Georgian Dream of rigging the October parliamentary election, demanding a fresh vote.

They say this makes Kavelashvili’s inauguration illegitimate.

Georgia has been gripped by protests for months, with Georgian Dream’s opponents accusing it of steering Tbilisi towards Moscow rather than towards the Caucasus country’s longstanding goal of joining the EU.

An overwhelming majority of Georgians back the country’s path to the EU and it is part of the constitution, but in November, the country’s ruling party said the government would not seek EU accession talks until 2028.

Georgian Dream has also become increasingly authoritarian in recent years, passing Russian-style laws targeting media and non-government groups who receive foreign funding, and the LGBT community.

Georgia’s four main opposition groups have rejected Kavelashvili and boycotted parliament.