Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addresses parliament on Nov. 1, 2018, before its dissololution

December 9 set as Election Day. Pashinyan travels to Artsakh

YEREVAN—Having failed for a second time to elect a prime minister, on Thursday Armenia’s National Assembly dissolved, per relevant constitutional provisions, setting the stage for snap elections next month.

President Armen Sarkissian on Thursday signed a decree declaring December 9 as the snap parliamentary election day.

According to Armenia’s Constitution, after the resignation of the prime minister, if the parliament fails to elect a new prime minister in two attempts, set seven days apart, the legislature automatically dissolves itself and new parliamentary elections must be held within 30 to 45 days.

Of the 105 lawmakers making up the parliament 70 lawmakers were registered for Thursday’s session. None of the legislators either voted “for” or “against” Pashinyan, who was nominated by his Yelk alliance and businessman Gagaik Tsarukyan’s faction, and 13 members abstained.

“What is historic about [today] is that after the nonviolent, velvet, people’s revolution that took place in April-May we completely return the power in the Republic of Armenia to its citizens. We return to the citizens and the people of the Republic of Armenia the power to decide the fate of future political processes,” Pashinyan told Parliament.

Soon after the dissolution of parliament, Pashinyan traveled to Artsakh.

Watch Pashinyan’s address to parliament on Thursday

After the September Yerevan municipal elections when Pashinyan’s “My Step” party garnered more than 86 percent of the votes, Pashinyan moved to compel early parliamentary elections in December. This move was met with resistance by certain parliamentary factions, especially the former president Serzh Sarkisian’s Republican Party of Armenia, which until Thursday held a majority in the legislature.