Republic Party requests Armenia`s CEC to annul election registration  of "Strong Armenia" bloc

ArmInfo.  The pro-Western Republic Party, led by Aram Sargsyan, has submitted an official application to the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) demanding the annulment of the registration of Samvel Karapetyan's "Strong Armenia" bloc for the  country's upcoming parliamentary elections on June 7.

Speaking to journalists outside the CEC headquarters, party  representative   Grigor  Arakelyan stated that they have two specific  demands. First and foremost, he noted, they demand that the CEC  invalidate the decision to register the "Strong Armenia" bloc.  According to Arakelyan, the party believes there are sufficient  grounds for this action. "Secondly, if the CEC deems the grounds  insufficient, we demand that the Commission exercise its right under  the Electoral Code of Armenia and appeal to the Administrative Court  of Armenia with the same demand," Arakelyan added.

When asked to clarify the exact grounds for the appeal, he provided a  vague response, noting only that party chairman Aram Sargsyan and  various public figures had repeatedly warned of numerous instances  that could impact the election results. "Specifically, this concerns  foreign interference, a lack of financial transparency, and pressure  exerted on Armenian citizens residing abroad to return to the  Republic and cast their votes under duress," Arakelyan asserted.   According to current legislation, the Administrative Court reviews  and rules on complaints regarding the registration, non-registration,  invalidation, or cancellation of electoral lists of candidates and  parties within 5 days of receiving the complaint, but no later than  the day before the elections. Should or when the CEC appeals to the  court, the deadline for a ruling is by the end of tomorrow.

Recall: During a debate on the Public Television of Armenia on June  4, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, responding to questions  from the heads of similarly aligned parties Gurgen Simonyan and Aram  Sargsyan, stated that he could not personally bar the "Strong  Armenia" bloc from participating in the parliamentary elections. He  explained that  he feared that someone would then claim that he had  again used administrative resources to eliminate political opponents.  Therefore, he called on the leaders of pro- Western parties to appeal  to the Central Election Commission themselves, demanding that the  opposition political force's registration be annulled. Notably,  during the debate, Sargsyan called this procedure pointless, stating  that the Central Election Commission lacks such authority. However,  he said that he would try.

Note, these developments are unfolding just a day and a half before  Armenia's parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for June 7,  2026.