Armenia's Pashinyan secures re-election with 49.8% of vote, cementing Westward shift
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's Civil Contract party won 49.81% of the vote in Armenia's first national election since losing Nagorno-Karabakh, securing a mandate to pursue a peace deal with Azerbaijan and deeper ties with Europe.
Election results
With all ballots counted, the Central Election Commission reported Civil Contract at 49.81% and the pro-Russian Strong Armenia alliance at 23.29%, followed by the Armenia Alliance (9.9%) and Prosperous Armenia (4%). Turnout reached 59% of the 3 million-strong electorate. Pashinyan called it a "historic victory".
- Civil Contract
- 49.81 %
- Strong Armenia
- 23.29 %
- Armenia Alliance
- 9.9 %
- Prosperous Armenia
- 4 %
The people of Armenia voted for peace, regional prosperity and regional cooperation, and I hope this will be met with a positive response from Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Path to peace and Europe
The vote was widely seen as a test of Pashinyan's push to normalise relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey after decades of conflict, including the 2023 loss of Nagorno-Karabakh. He campaigned on a platform of peace, warning that opposition forces would revive corruption and authoritarianism. The election came a year after President Trump helped broker a preliminary peace agreement. Pashinyan said he would continue Armenia's integration with the West, while maintaining membership of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union.
Dear Nikol Pashinyan, congratulations on your electoral victory. The spirit of the Velvet Revolution you led in 2018 is alive and well. We deeply value our partnership with a democratic Armenia that is coming ever closer to Europe. Armenia can count on us.
Opposition and crackdown allegations
The campaign was marred by arrests of opposition figures. Strong Armenia's leader, Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, spent it under house arrest on charges his party denounced as politically motivated. The authorities opened 59 criminal cases for alleged electoral violations, including multiple voting, and detained nine people. Karapetyan called the elections "shameful" and condemned what he described as repression against his campaign staff.
International reactions
European Commission Vice-President Kaja Kallas said Armenians appeared to have voted for a "European future", despite heavy Russian pressure. The result strengthens Pashinyan's hand in negotiations, while Moscow, which has warned against the Western pivot, lost a key test of influence in the South Caucasus.
The votes are being counted but it looks like now that Armenia's people, although under heavy Russian pressure, still chose to have a European future, which is a good thing... We are trying to help them as much as possible on their future reforms.
