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Members of Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract parliamentary faction have submitted a package of legislative amendments proposing a residency requirement for participation in nationwide elections and referendums, under which only Armenian citizens who have lived in Armenia for at least six months during the preceding year would be eligible to vote.
The authors of the draft are lawmakers Arusyak Manavazyan and Alkhas Ghazaryan.
The lawmakers’ initiative follows reports circulating in both international and Armenian media ahead of the parliamentary elections held in Armenia on June 7, alleging that Russia, in an attempt to influence the election results, was taking steps to encourage a large number of Armenian citizens residing in Russia to travel to Armenia, participate in the elections, and vote in favor of specific political forces — the “Strong Armenia” and “Armenia” alliances, as well as the “Prosperous Armenia” party.
Against the backdrop of these reports, a broad public debate emerged in Armenia over why, until now, there has been no legal regulation stipulating that the right to vote in nationwide elections should be granted to people who permanently reside in Armenia, are familiar with the situation in the country, understand the existing challenges, and make their voting decisions based on that understanding. Representatives of the ruling “Civil Contract” party had promised that, if they succeeded in the elections, they would address this issue.
As justification for the proposed legislation, the lawmakers stated that under the current regulations, there is no mechanism ensuring that the exercise of the right to participate in National Assembly elections and referendums reflects a permanent citizen–state connection (unlike elections for local self-government bodies and local referendums).
The package of draft laws proposes that, in the context of participation in nationwide elections and referendums, importance should be given not only to the formal aspect of a person’s connection with the state through citizenship, but also to the substantive aspect of that connection.
Accordingly, it is proposed to introduce an additional requirement for participation in elections and referendums: as of the 48th day before the voting or referendum day — and in the case of early National Assembly elections or a repeat vote, as of the 28th day before the voting day — a voter must have been physically present in the Republic of Armenia for 183 or more days during the preceding 365 days.