From Armenia in brief: Hovik Abrahamian elected to National Assembly

Published: Saturday August 30, 2008

Hovik Abrahamian. Photolure.

In a by-election held on August 24, Hovik Abrahamian, Armenia's presidential chief of staff and a senior member of the ruling Republican Party, was elected to Armenia's parliament. The election was held in Constituency Number 17 in the town of Ashtarak in the region of Ararat. The seat had become vacant after Henrik Abrahamian, Hovik Abrahamian's brother, renounced his parliamentary mandate.

According to Armenia's Central Electoral Commission (CEC), Hovik Abrahamian, who had run unopposed, received 33,322 votes out of 60,000 registered voters. According to the CEC, 155 people voted against him.

Armenia's election law states that if a candidate is unopposed, he or she needs to win more than half of the overall votes.

Mr. Abrahamian is widely believed to have replaced his brother in order to take over as speaker of the National Assembly. The current speaker, also a senior Republican, has said he sees no reason to vacate his post.