Programs of political parties in Armenia


This article lists political parties of the National Assembly of Armenia and represents their programs. Armenia became an independent state in 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since then, many political parties were formed in it, who mainly work with each other to form coalition governments. Currently the country has a multi-party system.

Armenian Revolutionary Federation

is a centre-left party which was founded in 1890, it is an observer member of the Party of European Socialists. The party currently has no political representation in the National Assembly.

Bright Armenia

is a classical liberal political party founded in 2015. Following the 2018 Armenian parliamentary election, the party emerged as the third largest in the National Assembly with 18 seats. The party is a member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party and maintains a pro-European ideology and opposes Armenia's membership in the Eurasian Union. The party wishes to renegotiate an Association Agreement and a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with the EU instead.

European Party of Armenia

The European Party of Armenia is a pro-European party established on 6 November 2018. The current leader is Tigran Khzmalyan. The party maintains a liberal ideology, is staunchly anti-Russian and believes that Armenia's future should be connected with Europe. The party manifesto calls for the government to begin membership negotiations with the European Union and NATO, while also supporting the withdrawal of Armenia from the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Eurasian Union.

Hanrapetutyun Party

The Hanrapetutyun Party is a centrist, pro-European political party in Armenia. The party was founded in 2001 by ex-members of the Republican Party of Armenia. Prior to the 2018 Armenian parliamentary election, the party formed the We Alliance with the Free Democrats, another pro-European political party in Armenia. However, the alliance received just 2% of the vote. As this was lower than the 5% minimum threshold required, the We Alliance of Hanrapetutyn and the Free Democrats failed to gain representation in the National Assembly.

Heritage

is a centre-right political party founded in 2002. Its current leader is Raffi Hovannisian, the party is a pro-Western and pro-European party. It holds observer member status in the European People's Party. The party favors integration of Armenia into the European Union and ultimate accession. The party however did not participate in the 2018 parliamentary elections.

National Progress Party of Armenia

The National Progress Party of Armenia is a left-wing political party in Armenia, founded on October 3, 2018 by a group of political activists following the 2018 Armenian Velvet Revolution.
The party announced social liberalism and direct-democracy as its principal ideology and is currently the only party whose list of candidates is headed by a woman, Lusine Haroyan. Haroyan stated during an interview that the party considers the role women play in politics is very important and the NPP has the most women on their list from all the political forces participating in the elections, with 43 out of the 83-person list being women. The party advocates for maintaining strong relations with the European Union, the United States and Russia.

Prosperous Armenia Party

The Prosperous Armenia party was formed in 2004 and its current leader is Gagik Tsarukyan. There is a debate whether Robert Kocharyan, the first president of Armenia has a strong influence over the party. The party is the second largest with the number of members in the National Assembly, with 26 seats. The party is a member of the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe and maintains a Eurosceptic and Pro-Russian ideology. The party supports Armenia's membership in the Eurasian Union.

Republican Party of Armenia

The Republican Party of Armenia was the main ruling party in Armenia from 1995 to 2017. The party was founded in 1990, its current leader is Serzh Sargsyan. The party failed to get any seats in the National Assembly following the 2018 Armenian parliamentary election. The party maintains a right-wing ideology and is an observer member of the European People's Party.

Rule of Law

The Rule of Law party is a centre-right political party in Armenia, led by Artur Baghdasarian. In the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections, it only obtained 9 seats in parliament, in contrast to 19 seats in the 2003 elections.
Baghdasaryan stated that "Armenia's membership in the European Union should be one of the key priorities of our country's present and future foreign policy, as EU membership will open new avenues for Armenia." The party is an observer member of the European People's Party.
In the February 2008 presidential election, Baghdasarian was the party's candidate; he placed third with 17.7% of the vote according to final official results.
The Rule of Law party failed to receive any seats in the National Assembly following the 2018 parliamentary elections.

Sasna Tsrer Pan-Armenian Party

is an Armenian nationalist political party that was founded in September 2018 during the Velvet Revolution. The party calls for unification of Armenia and neighboring Republic of Artsakh. The party maintains an anti-Russian stance and supports the withdrawal of Armenia from both the Eurasian Union and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. Party members advocate for a strategic alliance with the United States and the European Union. Sasna Tsrer participated in the 2018 parliamentary elections but failed to gain any representation in the National Assembly.

Way Out Alliance and My Step Alliance

In December 2016, the Way Out Alliance, emerged as a liberal political alliance in Armenia. The alliance had a Pro-European orientation and believed that Armenia should have closer relations with the European Union. As a result of the 2018 Armenian protests, Nikol Pashinyan was appointed Prime Minister of Armenia and his party, Civil Contract, was a member of the Way Out Alliance coalition. The alliance had officially dissolved prior to the 2018 Parliamentary elections. Afterwards, Nikol Pashinyan's Civil Contract party had formed the My Step Alliance with the Mission Party, in August 2018. The alliance won a clear majority in the National Assembly following the 2018 Parliamentary elections. The alliance claimed 88 seats and Pashinyan retained his title as Prime Minister. Following Pashinyan's victory, he confirmed that although relations with the EU should be strengthened, he would not withdraw Armenia's membership from the Eurasian Union, despite making previous statements questioning Armenia's membership. Pashinyan and his party currently maintains a centrist, big tent ideology.