ArmInfo.The RA government will continue to support the mayor of Yerevan and the Council of Elders for the sake of the capital and the people of Yerevan, said Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan. New mayor of Yerevan, Tigran Avinyan, took the oath of office on Friday, October 13, at the inauguration ceremony in the capital's administration.
According to the Prime Minister, despite the fact that the entire electoral process was tense, the elections to the Council of Elders of Yerevan showed the irreversibility of democracy in the Republic of Armenia. "These elections once again confirmed our commitment to the values of the non-violent, velvet revolution of 2018," he said.
As the head of the Cabinet of Ministers indicated, a new model of governance is being introduced in Yerevan - a coalition of the ruling Civil Contract and the Republic parties will govern the capital. This will bring a new political culture, the prime minister believes. Taking the oath and powers of the mayor of the capital of Armenia, Avinyan pledged to follow the Constitution and laws, implement the decisions of the Council of Elders of the city, conscientiously fulfill his duties, work daily for the well-being of the city residents, and protect the legitimate interests of the citizens. The ceremony is attended by Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan, Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan, Secretary of the Security Council Armen Grigoryan, as well as ministers, MPs from the ruling Civil Contract party, representatives of international organizations accredited in Armenia ambassadors. At the same time, Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II is not present at the ceremony; the ceremony is attended by the Primate of the Ararat Patriarchal Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Archbishop Navasard Kchoyan. But for the first time, journalists were not allowed into the capital's administration building. Following the results of the elections to the Council of Elders of Yerevan, held on September 17, the mandates of the newly elected Council were distributed as follows: Civil Contract - 24 mandates, National Progress - 14 mandates, Mother Armenia - 12 mandates, Republic - 8 mandates, Public Voice - 7 mandates. On October 10, following the results of voting in the newly elected Council of Elders of the capital of Armenia, Tigran Avinyan became the new mayor of Yerevan. In total, 37 members of the Council out of 65 took part in the voting. At the session, only the representative of the ruling "Civil Contract" party Tigran Avinyan was nominated, 32 members of the Council for him, and 5 members voted against him.
As expected, the Republic and Public Voice parties supported the election of Avinyan as mayor. The latter, by the way, constantly positioned itself as an opposition political force.