According to an exit poll conducted by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s “Civil Contract” party, the ruling party is leading the parliamentary race with 56.7% of the vote.
It is followed by the pro-Russian “Strong Armenia” bloc of businessman Samvel Karapetyan with 17.5%.
Armenian media published an alternative poll without citing a source, according to which Pashinyan’s party received 32.7%, while Karapetyan’s bloc obtained 29%.
According to this information, other notable opposition forces have the following standings:
- the “Armenia” bloc with 13.2%,
- “Prosperous Armenia” (6.1%)
- and “Wings of Unity” (4.6%).
Media outlets point out that for a lasting peace, Azerbaijan demands changes to the Armenian constitution, which contains a reference to “reunification with Nagorno-Karabakh.”
This requires holding a referendum, which is only possible with the approval of two-thirds of the Armenian parliament—a move that the main opposition forces oppose.
It should be noted that no official exit poll was conducted in Armenia on June 7, the day of the parliamentary elections.
The parliamentary elections have taken place, with 18 political forces participating — 2 blocs and 16 parties. A total of 2,485,851 Armenian citizens were eligible to vote. The country’s legislature is elected under a proportional representation system. The electoral threshold is 4% for parties and 8% for blocs.