Media: Pashinyan plots party purge before 2026 elections “Heads will roll”

The Yerevan-based newspaper Hraparak writes that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is preparing to make sweeping changes within his ruling team, potentially resorting to extreme measures to maintain control.

"Pashinyan is preparing to resort to terror in the near future and carry out radical changes within the ruling team, demonstrating his dissatisfaction with everyone and fulfilling his pre-election 'promise' that if the 'Civil Contract' (CC) does not win, heads will roll. He hopes that by 'sacrificing' some individuals, they will boost their ratings ahead of the 2026 elections," Caliber.Az quotes the newspaper’s article as saying.

Speculation is mounting that Pashinyan could initiate a “purge” within the parliamentary faction, potentially targeting figures such as Andranik Kocharyan and Vilen Gabrielyan, the material reads. “Interestingly, what affected CC members the most was not Gabrielyan’s inappropriate behavior in Gyumri, but his statement that their government would not be in power in 2026.”

CC members have raised suspicions that Gabrielyan’s actions in Gyumri may have been orchestrated by external forces to discredit the ruling party. “His behavior will be reviewed by the party's board.”

Additionally, frustration is growing among CC members, who argue that they exerted maximum effort during the recent political campaign, particularly in Gyumri, but were ultimately undermined by Pashinyan’s broader policies.

Pashinyan himself recognizes the party’s declining popularity, according to Hraparak. Notably, the prime minister chose not to participate in the final campaign event, a move seen as an attempt to distance himself from CC’s electoral defeat and avoid personal accountability for the party’s plummeting ratings.

By Khagan Isayev