Armenia to Vote on New Constitution After 2026 Elections

Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has announced that a vote on a new constitution will be held after the 2026 parliamentary elections. At a conference in Yerevan, Pashinyan said that the new basic law is important for the country's stability, development, and future.

Pashinyan said that holding the referendum after the elections will give the reform the best chance of being accepted by the public. He explained that having the political parties campaigning, present their ideas to the voters, ensures the winning party will have its say in the final version.

The Prime Minister spoke about the current constitution of Armenia, and how it has a disconnect between the government and the people. He claimed prior constitutional referendums, like the one in 1995, could not persuade society that the laws came from the choice of the people. Because of this, the new constitution is needed to get back that internal legitimacy.

Pashinyan connected constitutional legitimacy to national security, stating that internal acceptance is needed for security, and may impact the ability to get defense systems. He mentioned Armenia's foreign policy decision concerning the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, which acknowledges the borders of post-Soviet republics, as giving them access to military tech that they could not get before.

These constitutional reforms are tied to the idea of continuity of Armenian statehood, with statehood, identity, and citizen happiness being connected goals of the government. Pashinyan stated that the work of state institutions should help the country's economic growth. He stood by the government's focus on education, calling it the only sure way for the state to make the individual and the country stronger.

This announcement is a key moment, with the Prime Minister saying that Armenia is more independent and sovereign than ever before after the 2020 Karabakh War.

The opposition has spoken out against these changes, advising voters to reject the referendum. Opposition representative Levon Zurabyan said that Pashinyan's plans for a Fourth Republic are just a cover to avoid accountability for the disasters brought on the Armenian people and to appease Azerbaijan's constitutional requests.