Amid the war in Ukraine, Georgia’s governing party has undermined the fundamentals of an independent Georgia: its democracy and its ties with the West. Georgians perceive the risk of war with Russia as continuing to be high, ‘red’ according to the traffic lights system, yet the government’s response to the threat shows bandwagoning rather than preparation. Anti-democratic and anti-Western actions of the ruling party leave Georgia isolated from the West and alone with Russia—outcomes at odds with public preferences. In an autocratising Georgia, where elections are no longer free and fair with dissent suppressed, citizens are increasingly becoming the consumers of an elite-driven politics rather than its architects. Such a Georgia is losing vital defence and security cooperation with the West, remaining outside the developing European security architecture and navigating an increasingly unstable world on its own.