YEREVAN. – Opposition movement leader, Civil Contract Party Political Council member, and National Assembly (NA) of Armenia “Way Out” (Yelk) Faction head Nikol Pashinyan is in Parliament on Monday, and he will meet with all NA factions.

His talk with the Yelk faction is over, and during which Pashinyan was nominated as this faction’s candidate for the next Prime Minister. 

During the aforesaid movement’s rally Sunday at Republic Square, the heart of capital city Yerevan, Pashinyan noted that has a very important work to do in Parliament on Monday.

“I will have a meeting with all parliamentary factions,” he stated. “So that at the end of the day, I can provide information that the May 1 election of the candidate you have nominated to the post of PM is guaranteed.”  

Pashinyan added that they again will take a break and carry out no civil disobedience action on Monday.

But at 5pm, Nikol Pashinyan will come to Garegin Njdeh Square in Yerevan.

“From there, we are marching to Republic Square, and I will tell [you] about the results of the talks,” he added. “And together we decide on our future courses of action, depending on the situation.”

And on Tuesday starting at 8am, they will assemble at Republic Square.

The NA will debate on the new PM’s election matter at its special session on Tuesday.

The ruling Republican Party of Armenia’s (RPA) parliamentary faction has announced that it will not nominate its own candidate for PM. Also, RPA faction head Vahram Baghdasaryan noted that if the other three political forces represented in the parliament nominate a single candidate, their faction will not get in the way of Armenia having a new PM on Tuesday.

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun Party’s NA faction proposed all parliamentary factions to   nominate Pashinyan as the single candidate for PM.

And the “Tsarukyan” Faction has decided to support the “people’s candidate.”

The RPA, Tsarukyan, Way Out, and ARF factions have 58, 31, 9 and 7 seats, respectively, in parliament.

At least 53 votes are needed to elect the new Prime Minister of Armenia.

After 11-day nationwide protest actions by the Nikol Pashinyan-led movement, ex-President and RPA leader Serzh Sargsyan resigned from his recently-elected post of Prime Minister, on April 23.

Subsequently, Pashinyan announced that they will continue negotiations with the incumbent authorities on April 25, and toward achieving a smooth transfer of power in Armenia. But it became clear on the evening of April 24 that this talk would not take place.  

Acting PM and RPA Vice Chairman Karen Karapetyan stated that Pashinyan had posited new, unilateral demands.

Nikol Pashinyan, in turn, announced that they are resuming their protests as of April 25, since the RPA wants to retain power at the expense of Sargsyan’s resignation.

And on April 26, Pashinyan invited Karapetyan to start the second round of negotiations on April 27, and before the media.

But Aram Araratyan, the spokesperson of Karen Karapetyan, issued a statement on April 27, according to which the acting PM considers “negotiations” with Nikol Pashinyan viewless, and therefore he refused to take part.

And on April 29, civil disobedience actions resumed after a two-day break.

Also, according to Nikol Pashinyan, all streets in capital city Yerevan shall be closed off on Tuesday, when the NA will elect the new Prime Minister of Armenia.