YEREVAN. – At present, the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) de jure has no need to form a coalition, following the May 6 National Assembly (NA) elections, and it could form a government even on its own, Haykakan Zhamanak daily writes.  

“But a coalition will most likely be formed. There are two, or perhaps even three, coalition options. First, is the RPA-[Orinats Yerkir (Rule of Law) Party] RLP-Heritage [Party], which is highly unlikely, and the second is the RPA-RLP-[Prosperous Armenia Party] PAP, which is the most likely.   

But the ratio of the forces at the NA means at least two things: [Armenia’s second President] Robert Kocharyan will not be appointed PM. And whether or not he will be nominated in the 2013 presidential elections depends on the PAP’s position. It is certainly difficult to imagine that the PAP would enter into a conflict with [incumbent President] Serzh Sargsyan over Kocharyan’s return. The PAP faces a difficult choice: either to become an opposition, or attempt to ‘betray’ Serzh Sargsyan at the last moment during the 2013 presidential elections, or to stay in Serzh Sargsyan’s team. [And] The third option is the most likely [one],” Haykakan Zhamanak writes.            

To note, Armenia’s Central Electoral Commission has issued the preliminary results of the May 6 parliamentary elections. Five parties and one political bloc will be represented in the 131-seat National Assembly (Parliament) of Armenia: Republican Party of Armenia – 44.05% (663,066 votes), Prosperous Armenia Party – 30.20% (454,684 votes), Armenian National Congress – 7.10% (106,910 votes), Heritage Party – 5.79% (87,095 votes), ARF Dashnaktsutyun Party – 5.73% (86, 296 votes), and Orinats Yerkir Party – 5.49% (82,690 votes).