Aram Vardevanyan, a deputy of the “Strong Armenia” opposition faction, has officially assumed the position of deputy speaker of the National Assembly, thanks to the decisive support of the ruling power.
As a result of closed and secret voting, 53 deputies voted for the opposition candidate. It is noteworthy that the help of the ruling majority was required to ensure the necessary minimum threshold in the 105-seat parliament. Representatives of the “Civil Agreement” faction secured 13 “for” votes.
Head of the ruling faction Arusyak Manavazyan in a briefing with journalists, he emphasized that the decision to provide the missing votes was made consciously in order not to defeat the election process. At the same time, he denied claims that it was their direct obligation, noting that they could simply not choose and wait for new nominations.
According to the constitutional law “Regulations of the National Assembly”, the parliamentary opposition has a fixed right to nominate its own candidate for the deputy speaker, but an absolute majority of the total number of deputies, at least 53 votes, is required for approval.
Let’s remind that the parliament of the 9th convocation, which started on August 2, had already formed the main part of the leadership. He has held the position of NA Speaker Ruben Rubinyan, and two of his deputies were elected Hayk Konjoryan and Vahagn Aleksanyan: During those votes, the “Strong Armenia” alliance opposed the ruling candidates, and the “Armenia” faction did not participate in the process at all.
—
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Greg Madatian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2026/08/10/aram-vardevanyan-was-elected-na-deputy-speaker/