Uncertainty Remains in the Opposition Ranks: 'Hraparak'

'Hraparak' newspaper writes: 'On September 25, local elections will be held in nearly two dozen communities in Armenia. Proportional elections will take place in the Aragat zone communities of Tsaghkahovit and Talin, Gegharkunik's Chambarak, Lori's Gyulagarak, Alaverdi, Berd, Tashir, Kotayk province's Akunk, Byureghavan, Charentsavan, Jrvej, Tavush province's Berd, Shirak province's Ani, and Syunik province's Sisian, Kajaran, as well as in Areni and Yeghhegis communities of Vayots Dzor province. Here, council members and mayors will be elected. Majoritarian elections are expected only in one community—Alagyaz, populated by Yezidis in the Aragat zone.

The ruling 'Civil Contract' faction has submitted participation applications in almost all locations, which the party announced about two months ago. Meanwhile, the parliamentary opposition is in complete uncertainty regarding whether to participate or not, and they haven’t made a final decision yet. The 'Armenia' alliance conveyed to us that they would announce their decision once it's made as they are still in the discussion phase. There’s also uncertainty within the ARF; ARF MP Kristine Vardanyan stated regarding their participation in local elections that she has no information.'

In contrast, there is noticeable interest from unknown extra-parliamentary forces. For instance, the current mayor of Kajaran, Manvel Paramazyan, who was once aligned with the current opposition, is running under the 'Democratic Alternative' and 'Justice' party alliance led by political scientist Suren Surenyants, who was formerly with MP Vahe Hakobyan's party, and was included in the 'Armenia' alliance's lista in the 2021 parliamentary elections but withdrew in May.

Following the latest changes in the electoral code, pre-election alliances can no longer be named after individuals, unlike last year when the Mayor of Goris created a coalition named after himself and ran as a candidate.

We should recall that Vahe Hakobyan's 'Renaissance Armenia' and Avetik Chalabyan's 'National Agenda' coalition was previously named after Arush Arushanyan. This might explain why Manvel Paramazyan has decided to 'betray' the opposition and run under an unknown forces' list to avoid being associated with well-known parties and especially those linked to former officials. He seems to believe that connecting his name to the likes of Sharmazanyan or Vahe Hakobyan would be more damaging than associating with Suren Surenyants.

The 'Country of Living' party, associated with businessman Ruben Vardanyan, which was very active in the autumn, seems to have become passive. However, they reportedly will participate in the elections in the Lori province's Gyulagarak community. Whether they will participate in elections in other communities remains unclear; our calls and messages to one of the party's co-founders, Mesrop Arakelyan, went unanswered.

Last autumn, this newly formed extra-parliamentary force won in several communities and even has a mayor in Noyemberyan, while securing council representation in others. The party 'My Powerful Community,' formed by former mayors, is also in the discussion phase; the party's leader, Spartak Tartikyan, informed us that they would specify in which communities they will participate soon.

Artur Vanetsyan's 'Homeland' party spokesman Sos Hakobyan conveyed to us that they will clarify their participation issue in the coming days, as they are also still in discussions.

In anticipation of the upcoming elections, the government has also made another legislative change in urgent mode: if the council of a consolidated community cannot hold its first meeting within 20 days, the prime minister appoints an acting mayor. This tailored law for the government has already been implemented in Vanadzor, where the election of Mamikon Aslanyan, who is under custody, for the mayoral position continues to be obstructed, while Arkadi Peleshyan has been appointed as the mayor of the Akhalkalaki community, known for its criminal reputation. Essentially, they will be able to repeat the same process in the near future.

The candidates' nomination process is set to begin on August 21. Candidates are required to submit relevant documents to the territorial electoral commissions by 6 PM on August 26. Candidate registration will take place from August 26 to August 31 until 6 PM by the territorial electoral commission. The start of the pre-election campaign will be declared on September 5 and will continue until September 23.

More details can be found in the newspaper's current edition.