Ruling Party Confident About Election Victory

YEREVAN — Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party expects to win more votes than any other political force in Armenia’s upcoming parliamentary elections, a senior official said on Friday.

Armen Grigoryan, the secretary of Pashinyan’s Security Council, said opinion polls show that roughly one in three Armenians plan to vote for the party.

“These numbers are a certain indication of possible election results,” Grigoryan told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “We also have a high percentage [of support] among undecided citizens.”

“Let’s wait and see. It’s hard to make a forecast but we are going for the elections to once again receive the people’s mandate,” he said.

Pashinyan first expressed readiness to hold the early elections in December amid angry protests triggered by Armenia’s defeat in a six-week war with Azerbaijan. Opposition forces blamed him for the defeat and demanded that he hand over power to an interim government.

The prime minister announced on March 18 that the polls will take place after all. They are unofficially slated for June 20.

Grigoryan ruled out the possibility of post-election power-sharing agreements between Civil Contract and opposition blocs led by former Presidents Robert Kocharian and Serzh Sarkisian. But he was less categorical about possible coalition deals with other opposition forces.

“I think it will be more logical to discuss such issues after the election results,” added the official.

Civil Contract teamed up with other Pashinyan allies to participate in the last elections held in December 2018. Their My Step bloc garnered 70 percent of the vote at the time.