Commission on reforming electoral legislation of Armenia will  reconsider issues related to lowering the passing threshold

ArmInfo. The commission on reforming the electoral legislation of Armenia will return to the consideration of issues related to the reduction of the threshold and  the rates of the electoral deposit, Secretary of the Commission  Daniel Ioannisyan stated on October 9.  

According to him, currently  it is proposed to amend the Electoral Code, according to which the  threshold for passing to the National Assembly of the Republic of  Armenia will be 4% for parties, and 6% for blocs.  At the same time,  it is proposed to set the rate of the election deposit in the amount  of 7.5 million drams.  The secretary of the commission stressed that  earlier it was proposed to establish a pledge rate of 10 million  drams, however, after discussions with various public organizations  and political forces, this amount was reduced. The secretary of the  commission also stressed the need to quickly review the amendments,  since there is not much time left for holding early parliamentary  elections. According to the Constitution, 30-45 days are allocated  for holding early elections. Therefore, the document must be taken  for a specified period of time. Moreover, it is necessary to ensure  the collection of the necessary signatures for the nomination of  political forces, to conduct an election campaign. "If we take 10  days to collect signatures, then in fact there will be 4-5 days left  for the election campaign," stated Ioannisyan.

According to former MP Arshak Sadoyan, the proposed electoral deposit  rate will be an easy task for the oligarchs, but for many political  forces this can be an insurmountable obstacle. In addition, according  to the deputy, it is necessary to reduce the threshold, especially  for blocs.

Nevertheless, according to the Heritage party, this political force  supports the concept of developing electoral legislation. Despite the  fact that the party insists on setting a 3% barrier for parties and  5% for blocs, and lowering the stakes of the election deposit to 5  million drams, however, the proposed changes are a significant step  forward. The draft presents proposals not only from the Heritage  Party, but also from other political forces and international  organizations. "We hope that as a result of the amendments,  parliamentary elections based on democratic values will be held in  Armenia," the party said.

To recall by the decision of Nikol Pashinyan, a commission was  established under the Prime Minister to reform the electoral  legislation. After discussions with representatives of civil society  and political forces, the special commission will submit draft  amendments to the Electoral Code and laws concerning the organization  of elections to the Prime Minister. The Commission is headed by First  Deputy Prime Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, and Daniel Ioannisyan, the  head of the Informed Citizens Association, has been appointed  secretary.