Armenian Prime Minister's Party Wins Parliamentary Election With 49.82 Percent

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's Civil Contract party received 49.82 percent of the vote in Sunday's parliamentary election, according to preliminary results reported Monday by the Associated Press. The Armenia Alliance bloc led by former President Robert Kocharyan received about 10 percent, while remaining opposition groups stayed in the single digits.

Pashinyan first took office in 2018 after the Velvet Revolution and won again in 2021 snap elections that followed Armenia's loss in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War against Azerbaijan. Sunday marked the first regular election since he assumed power.

The vote occurred while Strong Armenia leader Samvel Karapetyan remained under house arrest on charges of conspiring to overthrow the government, charges his supporters reject as politically motivated. Similar charges were filed against other opposition candidates before the election.

Pashinyan campaigned on closer ties to the West and a Washington-brokered peace agreement with Azerbaijan and Turkey. He stated at campaign headquarters that voters chose "peace, regional prosperity, and regional cooperation" and expressed hope for positive responses from Turkey and Azerbaijan.

The prime minister also sought to reassure voters concerned about distancing from Russia, Armenia's historical security partner, by saying the election was not a choice between Russia and the West. Pashinyan's party fell short of the two-thirds majority required to amend the constitution and relinquish Armenia's claims to Nagorno-Karabakh, a key Azerbaijani demand for a final peace deal.

An influx of Russian and Ukrainian nationals fleeing the war in Ukraine contributed to recent economic growth.