RFE/RL – Sarkisian Urges Supporters To Vote For Other Opposition Forces

The HHK announced the decision on April 1. Speaking during a weekend party congress in Yerevan, Sarkisian seemed to acknowledge that its chances of remaining represented in Armenia’s parliament are slim.

”We need regime change. We are not interested in the prospect of having several parliament seats,” he said in a speech.

“There is a lot of talk about the need to motivate our citizens and ensure a high turnout in order to defeat the regime in the upcoming elections. We declare that the Republican Party’s activities, starting from this congress and until June 7, will be aimed at promoting the participation of our compatriots in these national elections,” he said.

“We will use every opportunity to convince our citizens to go to the polls and elect forces that will end Armenia’s current humiliation, end this treacherous, disastrous regime,” added Sarkisian.

Sarkisian stopped short of endorsing any opposition force. He noted only that he believes billionaire Samvel Karapetian’s Strong Armenia alliance is the number one opposition election contender.

The HHK ran in the last elections held in 2021 in an alliance with another opposition party led by Artur Vanetsian, a former head of Armenia’s National Security Service. The Pativ Unem alliance finished a distant third with 5.2 percent of the vote. Vanetsian announced its effective breakup a year later. None of the other major opposition groups appears to have been willing to team up with Sarkisian’s party this time around.

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