MARCH 27 2017 (The Conway Bulletin) — The April 2 parliamentary elections will define Armenia’s politics for the next five years, starting with the transformation from semi-presidential government to parliamentary republic even though this shift is not fully understood by the majority of society.

Armenia’s ruling Republican party is playing on society’s lack of understanding of the changes to try to retain a majority in parliament. But this is not a promising election for Republicans and for party leader, President Serzh Sargsyan.

The ruling party’s rating reached a historical low after years of economic stagnation, and accusations that corrupt officials were to blame for losses in a breakdown of a ceasefire with Azerbaijan around the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh in April last year. When 20 gunmen stormed a police station in Yerevan a few months later and took nine policemen hostage for two weeks, the violent action was not condemned by the public. Instead they were welcomed.

This seizure of the police station was used by the government as a trigger for reforms. The government changed some of the less-liked faces and Sargsyan invited former Yerevan mayor and Gazprom official Karen Karapetyan back from Moscow to become prime minister. Karapetyan promised to improve the government, root out corruption, improve the business environment and invest into the economy. His style of management was widely supported by the media and was positively greeted.