Armenian parliamentary election, 2017

Last updated
Armenian parliamentary election, 2017
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←  2012 2 April 2017 2018  →
Turnout60.86%
PartyLeader%Seats±
Republican Party Vigen Sargsyan 49.1758-11
Tsarukyan Alliance Gagik Tsarukyan 27.3531-2
Way Out Alliance Edmon Marukyan 7.789New
ARF Armen Rustamyan 6.587+2
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
Prime Minister beforePrime Minister after
Karen Karapetyan
Republican 		Karen Karapetyan
Republican
Armenia
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Parliamentary elections were held in Armenia on 2 April 2017. They were the first elections after a constitutional referendum in 2015 that approved reforms for the country to become a parliamentary republic. The result was a victory for the ruling Republican Party of Armenia, which won 58 of the 105 seats in the National Assembly. [1]

Armenia Republic in South Caucasus in West Asia

Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located in Western Asia on the Armenian Highlands, it is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia to the north, the de facto independent Republic of Artsakh and Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran and Azerbaijan's exclave of Nakhchivan to the south.

Parliamentary republic type of republic which operates under a parliamentary system

A parliamentary republic is a republic that operates under a parliamentary system of government where the executive branch derives its legitimacy from and is accountable to the legislature. There are a number of variations of parliamentary republics. Most have a clear differentiation between the head of government and the head of state, with the head of government holding real power, much like constitutional monarchies. Some have combined the roles of head of state and head of government, much like presidential systems, but with a dependency upon parliamentary power.

Contents

Electoral system

At the time of the previous elections in 2012, the National Assembly had 131 seats, of which 41 were elected in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting and 90 by proportional representation in a single nationwide constituency with an electoral threshold of 5%. [2]

National Assembly (Armenia) legislature of Armenia

The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, also informally referred to as the Parliament of Armenia is the legislative branch of the government of Armenia.

First-past-the-post voting voting system in which voters select one candidate, and the candidate who receives more votes than any other candidate wins

A first-past-the-post electoral system is one in which voters indicate on a ballot the candidate of their choice, and the candidate who receives the most votes wins. This is sometimes described as winner takes all. First-past-the-post voting is a plurality voting method. FPTP is a common, but not universal, feature of electoral systems with single-member electoral divisions, and is practiced in close to one third of countries. Notable examples include Canada, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as most of their current or former colonies and protectorates.

However, a referendum in December 2015 approved constitutional amendments reducing the minimum number of seats in the National Assembly to 101, all of which will be elected by party-list proportional representation, with seats allocated using the d'Hondt method and an election threshold of 5% for parties and 7% for multi-party alliances. [3] [4]

Party-list proportional representation family of voting systems

Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation (PR) in elections in which multiple candidates are elected through allocations to an electoral list. They can also be used as part of mixed additional member systems.

The D'Hondt method or the Jefferson method is a highest averages method for allocating seats, and is thus a type of party-list proportional representation. The method described is named in the United States after Thomas Jefferson, who introduced the method for proportional allocation of seats in the United States House of Representatives in 1791, and in Europe after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt, who described it in 1878 for proportional allocation of parliamentary seats to the parties. There are two forms: closed list and an open list.

The electoral threshold is the minimum share of the primary vote which a candidate or political party requires to achieve before they become entitled to any representation in a legislature. This limit can operate in various ways. For example, in party-list proportional representation systems an election threshold requires that a party must receive a specified minimum percentage of votes, either nationally or in a particular electoral district, to obtain any seats in the legislature. In multi-member constituencies using preferential voting, besides the electoral threshold, to be awarded a seat, a candidate is also required to achieve a quota, either on the primary vote or after distribution of preferences, which depends on the number of members to be return from a constituency.

The ballot paper has two sections; one of which is a closed list of candidates for the party at the national level and the other an open list of candidates for the constituency (of which there are 13) that the voter is voting in. Voters vote for a party at the national level and can also give a preference vote to any of candidates of the same party in a district list. [4] Seats are allocated to parties using the share of the vote at the national level, with half awarded to those in the national list and half to those who receive the most preference votes in the district lists. [4] Four seats are reserved for national minorities (Assyrians, Kurds, Russians and Yazidis), with parties having separate lists for the four groups. [4] A party list can not include over 70% of representatives of the same sex, and any there cannot be four consecutive members of one sex on a nationwide party list.

Closed list describes the variant of party-list proportional representation where voters can (effectively) only vote for political parties as a whole and thus have no influence on the party-supplied order in which party candidates are elected. If voters have at least some influence then it is called an open list.

Open list describes any variant of party-list proportional representation where voters have at least some influence on the order in which a party's candidates are elected. This as opposed to closed list, which allows only active members, party officials, or consultants to determine the order of its candidates and gives the general voter no influence at all on the position of the candidates placed on the party list. Additionally, an open list system allows voters to select individuals rather than parties. Different systems give voter different amounts of influence. Voter's choice is usually called preference vote.

Assyrians in Armenia make up the country's third largest ethnic minority, after Yazidis and Russians. According to the 2011 census, there are 2,769 Assyrians living in Armenia, and Armenia is home to some of the last surviving Assyrian communities in the Caucasus. There were 6,000 Assyrians in Armenia before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, but because of Armenia's struggling economy during the 1990s, the population has been cut by half, as many have emigrated.

If a party receives a majority of the vote but gets less than 54% of the seats, they will be awarded additional seats to give them 54% of the total. If a party wins over two-thirds of seats, the losing parties will be given extra seats reducing the share of seats of winning party to two-thirds. If a government is not formed within six days of the preliminary results being released, a run-off round of voting between the top two parties must be held within 28 days. A party winning the run-off will be given the seats required for a 54% majority, with all seats allocated in the first round are preserved. [4]

List of participating parties and alliances

The following parties and electoral alliances participated in the election: [5]

#Party or allianceCompositionHead of electoral listSeats heldEuropean affiliationSlogan
1 Way Out Alliance Bright Armenia,
Hanrapetutyun Party,
Civil Contract 		Edmon Marukyan
2 / 131
Election, change, victory (Armenian : Ընտրություն, փոփոխություն, հաղթանակ) [6]
2 Free Democrats Khachatur Kokobelyan
3 / 131
We can (Armenian : Մենք կարող ենք) [7]
3 Armenian Renaissance Artur Baghdasaryan
5 / 131
 EPP (observer)Vote for change, vote for renaissance (Armenian : Քվեարկիր հանուն փոփոխության, քվեարկիր հանուն վերածննդի) [8]
4 Tsarukyan Alliance Prosperous Armenia,
Alliance party,
Mission Party 		Gagik Tsarukyan
33 / 131
 ACRE Time to change and build (Armenian : Փոփոխությունների և կառուցելու ժամանակն է) [9]
5ANC-PPA alliance Armenian National Congress,
People's Party of Armenia 		Levon Ter-Petrosyan
7 / 131
 ALDE Peace, reconciliation, neighborliness (Armenian : Խաղաղություն, հաշտություն, բարիդրացիություն) [10]
6 Republican Party of Armenia Vigen Sargsyan
69 / 131
 EPP (observer)Security and progress (Armenian : Անվտանգություն եւ առաջընթաց) [11]
7 Armenian Communist Party Tachat Sargsyan
0 / 131
Motherland, socialism, labour (Armenian : Հայրենիք, սոցիալիզմ, աշխատանք) [12]
8ORO alliance
(Ohanyan-Raffi-Oskanian)		 Seyran Ohanyan,
Heritage party (Raffi Hovannisian),
Vartan Oskanian,
Unity party		 Seyran Ohanyan
4 / 131
 EPP (observer)Heritage, unity, victory (Armenian : Ժառանգություն, համխմբում, հաղթանակ) [13]
9 Armenian Revolutionary Federation Armen Rustamyan
5 / 131
 PES (observer)A new beginning, a just Armenia (Armenian : Նոր սկիզբ, արդար Հայաստան) [14]

Opinion polls

DatePollster HHK TA (PAP) YELQ ARF AD HV ANC-PPAORO HKK
18–27 March 2017 ASA & BS/Gallup 30299735443
12–19 March 2017 Gallup 29.428.26.14.84.43.42.92.51.2
23 February–2 March 2017 Gallup 22.826.44.33.93.42.72.61.81.0

Conduct

The OSCE criticised the election by saying it had been tainted by vote-buying, and pressure on civil servants and employees of private companies. [15] Transparency International, along with various other organizations, confirmed cases of bribe distribution. [16]

For the first time in Armenian elections, a voter authentication system was used. On election day, all voters were identified through the use of Voter Authentication Devices (VADs), which contained an electronic copy of the voter lists. Voters' fingerprints were also scanned and the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) stated that it would conduct cross-checks to identify potential cases of multiple voting if any complaints were raised. [17] The introduction of the technology was supported by the opposition and civil society groups. [18]

In February 2017 the CEC tested the new devices, [19] which were provided by the UNDP electoral assistance project, funded by the European Union, United States, Germany, United Kingdom and the Armenian government. [20]

According to final reports from the International Elections Observation Missions (IEOM), "the VADs functioned effectively and without significant issues." [17] Observers reported the introduction of the VADs was welcomed by most IEOM interlocutors as a useful tool for building confidence in the integrity of election day proceedings. [18] However, they mentioned in the final report that the late introduction of the VADs could have led to a limited time for testing of equipment and training of operators, stating "Observers noted some problems with scanning of ID documents and fingerprints; however, this did not lead to significant disruptions of voting. IEOM observers noted 9 cases of voters attempting multiple voting that were captured by the VADs. The VADs provided the possibility for voters to be redirected, in case they were registered in another polling station in the same TEC, and this was observed in 55 polling stations." [21]

Results

Armenian parliamentary elections 2017.svg
PartyVotes%Seats+/–
Republican Party of Armenia 770,44149.1758–11
Tsarukyan Alliance 428,83627.3531–2
Way Out Alliance 122,0657.789New
Armenian Revolutionary Federation 103,0486.587+2
Armenian Renaissance 58,2653.720–6
ORO Alliance (Ohanyan-Raffi-Oskanian)32,5082.070–5
ANC–PPA Alliance25,9501.660–7
Free Democrats 14,7390.940New
Armenian Communist Party 11,7410.7500
Invalid/blank votes6,675–––
Total1,575,786100105–26
Registered voters/turnout2,588,46860.86––
Source: CEC Panorama

By Electoral District

Electoral District Way Out Free Dem. Arm. Ren. PAP ANC RPA Comm. ORO ARF Total votes castRegistered votersTurnout
1 - Yerevan Districts Avan, Nor Nork & Kanaker-Zeytun 13.3%1.3%4.8%18.8%1.7%50.7%1.1%2.3%6.0%120,409200,21960.1%
2 - Yerevan Districts Ajapnyak, Arabkir & Davtashen 15.5%1.5%2.3%23.1%3.8%45.8%1.1%2.0%5.0%125,885212,52359.2%
3 - Yerevan Districts Malatia-Sebastia & Shengavit 13.0%1.7%3.4%19.3%2.3%53.1%1.3%1.7%4.2%130,249224,32258.1%
4 - Yerevan Districts Erebuni, Kentron, Nork-Marash & Nubarashen 14.8%1.9%2.4%23.7%2.5%46.2%1.3%2.3%4.9%115,206208,74655.2%
5 - Ararat 4.4%0.4%1.6%35.4%0.7%51.8%0.3%0.5%4.9%151,297221,50768.3%
6 - Armavir 4.8%0.7%3.7%24.3%1.1%53.1%0.8%2.4%9.0%128,339232,01055.3%
7 - Aragatsotn 2.3%0.3%5.0%30.3%2.2%44.5%0.6%3.6%11.2%76,397116,81665.4%
8 - Gegharkunik 2.6%0.4%3.9%30.3%0.9%52.6%0.4%1.9%7.1%127,915191,67266.7%
9 - Lori 8.6%0.5%2.6%18.5%1.7%62.2%0.5%1.4%4.0%137,758238,29157.8%
10 - Kotayk 8.7%0.6%2.3%43.9%1.4%34.6%0.8%2.9%4.7%139,666238,42158.6%
11 - Shirak 3.2%0.6%10.4%32.2%1.1%40.6%0.5%2.1%9.3%132,709230,70157.5%
12 - Vayots Dzor and Syunik 3.2%0.7%2.8%29.0%1.1%53.7%0.5%1.9%7.3%108,338162,45666.7%
13 - Tavush 4.1%2.1%3.9%23.3%1.5%48.1%0.5%3.5%13.1%72,715110,03766.1%
Source: CEC

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References

  1. ↑ RPA to be represented by 58 lawmakers in Armenia’s 105-seat Parliament Panorama, 4 April 2017
  2. ↑ "ARMENIA Azgayin Zhoghov (National Assembly)". ipu.org. Inter-Parliamentary Union.
  3. ↑ All Change in Armenia Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 8 December 2015
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Parliamentary elections 2 April 2017: OSCE/ODIHR needs assessment mission report OSCE
  5. ↑ "Հայաստանի Հանրապետության կենտրոնական ընտրական հանձնաժողով".
  6. ↑ 2017թ. խորհրդարանական ընտրություններին «ԵԼՔ» դաշինքը հանդես կգա «Ընտրություն, Փոփոխություն, Հաղթանակ» կարգախոսով և հետևյալ տարբերանշանով
  7. ↑ "Մեր ծրագրում ներառված են բոլոր ոլորտները, ինչպես պահանջում է Սահմանադրությունը. Հ. Բագրատյան".
  8. ↑ "ՀՎԿ-ը հրապարակեց իր ցուցակը. այն կգլխավորի Արթուր Բաղդասարյանը (Տեսանյութ)".
  9. ↑ Design, Sargssyan Studio - Web & Graphic. "Փոփոխությունների և կառուցելու ժամանակն է. "Ծառուկյան" դաշինքի նախընտրական տեսահոլովակը".
  10. ↑ "Մեկնարկում է "ՀԱԿ-ՀԺԿ" դաշինքի նախընտրական քարոզարշավը (տեսանյութ)".
  11. ↑ "ՀՀԿ-ն ընտրություններին կմասնակցի "Անվտանգություն եւ առաջընթաց" կարգախոսով (տեսանյութ)".
  12. ↑ "Կոմկուսը ընտրություններին կմասնակցի "Հայրենիք, սոցիալիզմ, աշխատանք" կարգախոսով".
  13. ↑ Intell-Sol.com. ""Օհանյան-Րաֆֆի-Օսկանյան" դաշինքի 12 առաջարկները".
  14. ↑ "Elections in Armenia: 8 Reasons to Vote for the ARF-D on April 2". 29 March 2017.
  15. ↑ "Armenia elections tainted by vote-buying: OSCE monitors". Al Jazeera. 3 April 2017.
  16. ↑ "Transparency International: 45 cases of Armenia election bribe distribution, promise were recorded in 10 days". News.am. 29 March 2017.
  17. 1 2 Hairenik (2017-04-03). "OSCE Releases Statement on Armenian Parliamentary Elections Monitoring Mission". The Armenian Weekly. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
  18. 1 2 "Republic of Armenia Parliamentary Elections, 2 April 2017 - OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission Final Report". Osce.org.
  19. ↑ "Press release on elections in Armenia - EEAS - European External Action Service - European Commission". EEAS - European External Action Service. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
  20. ↑ "New Voter Authentication Devices (VADs) tested in Armenia | EC-UNDP Joint Task Force". www.ec-undp-electoralassistance.org. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
  21. ↑ "Doc. No 14325". assembly.coe.int. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
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