Armenia’s ruling party excludes two MPs from election list

Armenian MPs Hayk Sargsyan and Karen Sarukhanyan have not been included in the pre-election list of the ruling Civil Contract party.

Both politicians failed to pass the party leadership’s internal selection process, Caliber.Az reports, citing Hraparak newspaper.

The outlet reports that Sargsyan’s candidacy was supported by only three of the 20 members of the Civil Contract board. He is known for controversial legislative initiatives related to military service and has also been mentioned in media reports in connection with alleged ties to criminal figure Rustam Stepanyan, known as “Fat Rustam.”

Karen Sarukhanyan, an MP from Gyumri, drew public attention last year after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan publicly suggested that he take a drug test. According to media reports, the test result was positive.

For the record, Armenia's upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for June 7, 2026, mark the first regularly scheduled national vote since 2017 and the first full-term contest under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's leadership since the 2021 snap elections. This vote will determine the composition of the unicameral National Assembly (parliament), which in turn nominates the prime minister—the country's most powerful position in its parliamentary republic system established by the 2015 constitutional reforms.

By Khagan Isayev