Georgia’s outgoing president Salome Zourabichvili refused to step down from the post of sworn-in Mikheil Kavelashvili.

Thousands of Georgians protested in the capital Tbilisi as a new president allied with the ruling Georgia Dream party was inaugurated.

Mikheil Kavelashvili, a former footballer, was sworn in at a politically sensitive time in the country after the government suspended his bid to join the European Union.

Georgian Dream won parliamentary elections in October, but the victory was marred by allegations of fraud that sparked many street protests.

The outgoing President, Salome Zourabichvili, refused to step down on Sunday, saying he was “only the official president”.

Speaking to the crowds gathered outside, Zourabichvili said he would leave the presidential palace but said his successor was illegal.

“This building has been a symbol as long as the official president has been sitting here,” he said.

After walking for a few minutes, Kavelashvili was sworn in at a closed ceremony in the parliament, where he was accompanied by his family. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze also attended the opening ceremony.

Speaking after taking the oath, Kavelashvili went on to praise Georgia’s “culture, values, nationality, sanctity of family and faith”.

“Our history clearly shows that, after many struggles to protect our country and culture, peace has always been one of the most important goals and principles for the people of Georgia,” he said.

Four opposition parties in Georgia rejected Kavelashvili and boycotted parliament.

Kavelashvili was a member of Parliament with the Georgian Dream party and was the only candidate for this job. Zourabichvili has previously criticized his election as extreme.

The Georgian Dream has turned authoritarian in recent years, passing Russian-style laws targeting the media and foreign-funded non-governmental groups, as well as the LGBT community.

It refused to join Western sanctions on Russia after the all-out invasion of Ukraine, and called the West a “global war party”, making a mockery of its stated intention to join the EU and Nato.

The majority of Georgians back the country’s approach to the EU and are part of the constitution.

But in November, the ruling Nationalist Party said the government would not seek EU accession talks until 2028.

The announcement sparked several days of protests, with riot police using tear gas and water cannons at protesters, who retaliated by throwing explosives and stones.

On Saturday, protesters waving Georgian and EU flags gathered again before the launch, forming a human chain that stretched for kilometers.

“I’m out on the street with my whole family trying to somehow get this little country out of the clutches of the Russian regime,” one protester told the Associated Press.

US this week penalties imposed by the former prime minister of Georgia and founder of the Georgian Dream, Bidzina Ivanishvili.

Georgia is a parliamentary democracy with the president as the head of state, and the prime minister as the head of the parliament.

When Zourabichvili became president in 2018 he was endorsed by Georgian Dream, but he has denounced their election victory in late October as a “special operation of Russia” and supported overnight EU protests outside parliament.

Additional reporting from Nino Shonia in Tbilisi.