Nikol Pashinyan: The results of the past elections showed that the  parliamentary forces represented in the legislative body do not have  a corresponding mandate from the people

ArmInfo.On September 24, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashian congratulated the Armenian people on the direct connection on his Facebook page with an  unprecedented victory in the elections to the Council of Elders of  Yerevan held on the eve. He also touched on the allegations of  "allegedly" low attendance of citizens and explained the need to form  a new parliament.

According to Pashinyan, the past elections to the Council of Elders  became exceptional, since for the first time a RA citizen voted  without coercion and without financial temptations. "An Armenian  citizen used his right to vote or not to vote in these elections, and  thus make his choice," he said. He congratulated the candidate for  the mayor of Yerevan from the block "My step" and the members of the  Council of Elders from the same-name bloc, wishing them fruitful work  for the benefit of the capital. Pashinyan also congratulated the  candidates from the Prosperous Armenia Party and the Luys bloc with  the fact that they will become part of the Council of City Elders.  Pashinyan also said that Armenia should listen to the remarks of  international observers in order to reform the electoral system. "We  should have such an impeccable electoral system so that during the  elections no one would have any questions, so that their results  enjoyed the confidence of the voters," Pashinyan said. As for the  talks about the fact that the majority of Yerevan citizens did not  take part in the elections, their Pashinyan called "mildly  ridiculous". In the elections held in 2017, as the prime minister  noted, even in the conditions of using the administrative resource  and electoral bribery, fewer citizens participated, while they were  brought to the polling stations on Gazels and buses. In addition, as  he pointed out, everyone knows that the current electoral lists do  not reflect the real situation. "Many citizens left the country 20-25  years ago, but continue to stay on the electoral lists," he said. In  addition, if earlier people of advanced age, sick and disabled due to  electoral bribery were forced to come to the polling station and vote  for a specific candidate, in this case they decided to stay at home,  because they did not have previous obligations. "This all speaks  about the need to improve the electoral lists," he said.

The prime minister recalled that these elections, among other things,  had important political significance. "I asked the voters during the  elections to the Council of Elders of Yerevan to vote for the" My  step "block, thus giving the mandate to initiate negotiations with  parliamentary and non-parliamentary forces for holding early  parliamentary elections." I thank my fellow citizens for the given  mandate, "Pashinyan said.  At the same time, he highly appreciated  the congratulations of his colleagues on "the political shop", who  not only welcomed the results of the elections, but also wished  success to the "My step" bloc.

According to Pashinyan, the results of the elections held on the eve  of the election showed that the parliamentary forces represented in  the current legislative body do not reflect the real moods of  Armenian citizens and do not have the appropriate mandate from the  people. In this regard, upon his return to Yerevan, he will begin  consultations with a view to holding early parliamentary elections in  order to understand the timing and mechanisms for holding them.  "Political uncertainty hinders not only the development of the  economy, but also the attraction of investments." The people should  be given the opportunity to form a new parliament, a new  parliamentary majority that the prime minister will choose, "he said,  stressing that Armenia is on the eve of an important period.