The “National Democratic Union” (NDU) party led by Vazgen Manukyan made a statement, deciding not to run in the upcoming parliamentary elections. In order to avoid polluting votes, the political force also refuses to officially join any alliance, instead calling on its supporters to actively support ideologically close opposition forces and achieve a change of power.

The representatives of the party emphasize that the upcoming vote has a fatal significance and cannot be considered as another standard political process. The NDU expressed concern that some parts of the opposition are approaching the election campaign with the usual logic, while the situation requires extraordinary approaches to consolidation. Earlier, the union proposed the opposition to come up with two or three large associations and a unified strategy: Nikol Pashinyan in order to create a real balance to the government.

According to the assessment of the party leadership, the current government has completely exhausted itself. NDU warns that the latter’s political reproduction threatens the country with the loss of identity and deprives Armenia of the opportunity to build a safe, independent and prosperous state. Realizing that there are many political forces offering ways out of the deep crisis, the party expresses its readiness to support them without being included in the pre-election lists.

At the current stage, the main task of the political force is to ensure high voter turnout and prevent polling of votes. It is for this reason that NDM has decided to refuse to officially participate in the election campaign on its own or as part of any alliance. The party sees its mission in helping the opposition associations whose plans are aimed at the real development of the country.

Summarizing the statement, the NDM called on its comrades-in-arms and sympathizers to vote for the forces that share their decades-old values: the uncompromising defense of sovereignty, the strengthening of defense capabilities, the resolution of the Artsakh issue, and effective interaction with Armenian structures worldwide. Convinced that the victory of the opposition is quite possible, the party assured that it will continue the fight for its ideas, regardless of the final results of the elections.

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