President Serge Sarkisian officially foresees that the next parliamentary elections will take place on 2 April 2017 in Armenia.
A presidential decree issued by the Sarkisian press office indicates that the date has been set in accordance with the country’s new electoral code adopted this summer.
The elections will be held one year before the start of the second and last parliamentary term of Sarkisian and the end of Armenia’s transition to a parliamentary system, following a controversial constitutional reform adopted a year ago. They will determine who will govern the country after April 2018.
The National Assembly which will be elected in April will also choose the next president of Armenia, the latter will have an essentially honorary role.
Senior officials of the Armenian-led Republican Party (HHK) led by Sarkisian said the HHK expects to keep control of Parliament. The party capitalized on its levers and government resources to win the last legislative elections tainted by the allegations of the opposition of electoral fraud.
Sarkisian has still not clarified whether he would like to remain in power as Prime Minister after his presidential term. So far, it has only ensured that the Armenian authorities will do their best to ensure that the vote meets democratic standards.
In September, the authorities and three major opposition parties reached an historic agreement to minimize fraud in the upcoming elections. It resulted in major changes to the electoral code.
Both the United States and the European Union welcomed the historic agreement, pledging to provide millions of dollars of funding for its implementation. But echoing the statements of Armenian opposition leaders, they warned that the amendments alone do not guarantee the freedom and fairness of the vote. “This is a matter of political will,” said the US Embassy in Yerevan on 28 November.
Claire © armenews.com