Armenia election: Prime Minister Pashinyan declares victory

Published 8 June 2026 · politics

The election result, once confirmed, would cement Pashinyan's Westward push away from Russian influence. It is the first vote since a 2023 crushing military defeat

The election result, once confirmed, would cement Pashinyan's Westward push away from Russian influence. It is the first vote since a 2023 crushing military defeat by Azerbaijan. Armenians voted on Sunday in a parliamentary election that seems likely to bolster the country's pro-EU trajectory, despite Russia's anger at the course the government has taken. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared on Monday victory. Early results showed Pashinyan's ruling Civil Contract Party leading with 52.5%, with Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan's Strong Armenia alliance trailing behind at 23.2%, according to the Central Election Commission, citing 23.5% of electoral precincts reporting. E President Robert Kocharyan's Armenia alliance was third with some 9%, followed by the Prosperous Armenia Party, which cleared the electoral threshold with 4.6%. The commission said turnout was 59%. In a press conference in ⁠the ⁠early hours of Monday morning, Pashinyan said his Civil Contract party had prevailed, calling it a "historic victory". The official preliminary results are due on Monday. What do we know about the competing parties? The ruling Civil Contract party of Prime Minister Pashinyan had the pro-Russia Strong Armenia party as its closest rival in the election, which is also seen as a referendum on Pashinyan's peace efforts with Azerbaijan.

Polls showed Pashinyan and his party well in the lead with up to 32% support, compared with just 11% for Strong Armenia. This seems to indicate some endorsement of Pashinyan's efforts to move Armenia closer to the West since he came to power in 2018, although he will not be able to govern alone if the early results are confirmed. In contrast, Strong Armenia, formed last year by Russian-Armenian billionaire Karapetyan, wants Armenia to remain close to Russia, a key trading partner and energy supplier. Police were reported by the media to have searched the offices of Strong Armenia in the city of Gyumri and made several arrests. Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (center) has sought closer ties with the EU Image: Anthony Pizzoferrato/AP Photo/picture alliance What is Russia's stance on Armenia's election? Yerevan's rapprochement with Europe has raised the ire of Russia, Armenia's former Soviet master. Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin made veiled threats about the negative economic impact of a move away from Moscow if Armenia continued on its course. In the weeks before the election, Russia has moved to make such theoretical economic threats more tangible by introducing new restrictions on Armenian produce including flowers and vegetables.