YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Yelk faction MP Hrachya Hakobyan rules out any coalition between HHK (Republicans) and Civil Contract Party.

“First of all the HHK should appear in parliament, and then only form a coalition,” he told reporters today.

“The Republican Party definitely will not form a coalition with Civil Contract. I think the party [HHK] won’t even enter parliament,” he said.

He argues that attempting to garner the vote of the people by manipulating the name of Nikol Pashinyan is yet another manipulation of the HHK.

He said that the HHK has already started campaigning in order to mislead the people.

“They won’t even vote for themselves in the voting booth, they’ll vote for the Im Kayl [My Step] alliance,” Hakobyan said.

The Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) will run for parliament in the upcoming early election of parliament.

Today the HHK elected ex-defense minister Vigen Sargsyan (HHK) to serve as First Vice President of the party.

Speaking to reporters today after a HHK Council session, Sargsyan (no relation to President Serzh Sargsyan) said that he will lead the proportional list of the party for the December 9 polls.

“The list will be comprised of both our party friends and candidates representing other parties or independent candidates. Anyone included in the list will also be in the [district] list,” Sargsyan said.

Sargsyan refused to disclose other names in the list and said that it will be published November 14.

He said that HHK President Serzh Sargsyan, the former President of Armenia, and ex-PM Karen Karapetyan, won’t participate in the election.

“We are going through a very interesting process: it is a transformation of status after being [government],” he told reporters, adding that the HHK, in its new status, as an opposition force, is seeking ways to use its knowledge and experience for the country’s progress.

Vigen Sargsyan said that the HHK Council today discussed ‘a very important’ document, which stipulates the Republican Party’s approaches for all processes taking place in the country, the results of the incumbent government’s activities and the problems which the party sees in terms of policy and ideological approaches.

Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan resigned on October 16 to trigger the process of disbanding the parliament.

Pashinyan took office after massive protests in April forced president-turned PM Serzh Sargsyan to resign. But Sargsyan’s Republican Party (HHK) still has most seats in the 105-seat parliament. Since taking office, Nikol Pashinyan has numerously said that the incumbent parliament doesn’t represent the people and that early elections should take place as soon as possible.

In accordance to the Constitution, when a Prime Minister resigns the parliament must elect a new PM within two weeks. Lawmakers deliberately failed to elect a new PM as a formality in order to pave the way for dissolution.

The last round took place on November 1 and the parliament was dissolved by virtue of law.

Later on the same day, President Armen Sarkissian signed an order on dissolving the parliament and calling early elections on December 9.

The parliament will function until the new parliament is elected.

The government is formally a caretaker government until a new government is formed after the election.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan