Armenia Government Profile 2012

Armenians voted overwhelmingly for independence in a September 1991 referendum, followed by a presidential election in October 1991 that gave 83% of the vote to Levon Ter-Petrossian. Ter-Petrossian had been elected head of government in 1990, when the Armenian National Movement defeated the Communist Party. Ter-Petrossian was re-elected in 1996 in a disputed election. Following public demonstrations against Ter-Petrossian's policies on the predominantly ethnic Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh that is located within Azerbaijan, the President resigned under pressure in January 1998 and was replaced by Prime Minister Robert Kocharian, who was subsequently elected President in March 1998. Following the October 27, 1999 assassination in Parliament of Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsian, Parliament Speaker Karen Demirchian, and six other officials, a period of political instability ensued during which an opposition headed by elements of the former Armenian National Movement government attempted unsuccessfully to force Kocharian to resign. Riding out the unrest, Kocharian was later reelected in March 2003 in a contentious election that the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the U.S. Government deemed to have fallen short of international standards.

The Government of Armenia's stated aim is to build a Western-style parliamentary democracy as the basis of its form of government. However, international observers have been critical of the conduct of national elections in 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2008, as well as the constitutional referendum of 2005. The new constitution in 2005 increased the power of the legislative branch and allows for more independence of the judiciary; in practice, however, both branches remain subject to political pressure from the executive branch, which retains considerably greater power than its counterparts in most European countries.

The unicameral National Assembly has 90 seats that are elected by proportional representation (party list) and 41 that are single mandate districts. Armenia held its most recent parliament elections in 2007, when the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) won 33% of the votes cast, followed by Prosperous Armenia (15%), the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun (13%), Rule of Law (7%), and the Heritage Party (6%). This election also was marred by irregularities. The RPA and Prosperous Armenia joined to form a governing coalition which secured an absolute majority of parliament seats. The ARF negotiated a cooperation agreement with the governing coalition in exchange for ministerial positions, but declined to join the coalition formally, instead reserving the right to support its own candidate for the February 19, 2008 presidential election.

The Republican Party of Armenia, Prosperous Armenia, the Rule of Law, and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun signed a new coalition agreement on March 21, 2008. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation resigned from the coalition in April 2009, citing differences over the conduct of foreign policy.

The 2008 presidential election, while originally deemed by the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) to be “mostly in line” with OSCE standards, was later seen to be marred by credible claims of ballot stuffing, intimidation (including beatings) of poll workers and proxies, vote buying, and other irregularities. Recounts were requested, but ODIHR observers noted “shortcomings in the recount process, including discrepancies and mistakes, some of which raise questions over the impartiality of the [electoral commissions] concerned.”