Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) member commented on the proposal of opposition forces to shift to proportional voting system. From legal perspective, Hovhannes Sahakyan ruled out the possibility of implementing the shift due to the need to introduce amendments to RA Constitution and Electoral Code.

“From political standpoint, the arguments issued by the opposition are not weighty enough to justify the shift to the proportional system,” Mr. Sahakyan stated.

RPA member further noted that majority system enables MPs to raise issues of direct interest to voters, adding that distant rural community members don’t familiarize themselves with party programs preferring to trust the candidates they know in person.

In this context, Sahakyan cited U.S. and France as examples of developed countries with 100% majority system.

Today, December 27, Heritage and ARF Dashnaksutyun opposition parties issued a joint statement claiming authorities to drop majority election system and shift to 100 % proportional voting one.

The parties noted that proportional voting system will ensure equal competition for the political forces, expanding their public responsibility, reducing the impact of both political and electoral factors on election process.