Vardan Ghukasyan is not ideal candidate, but decision rests with people — Robert Margaryan

On March 30, local government elections were held in Gyumri, resulting in five political forces entering the Gyumri City Council: the Civil Contract Party, the Communist Party of Armenia, the Our City bloc of parties, the My Powerful Community Party, and the Mother Armenia Alliance. Thanks to a coalition of three opposition forces—Martun Grigoryan, Ruben Mkhitaryan, and Karen Simonyan—the Communist Party of Armenia’s candidate, Vardan Ghukasyan, is set to become the mayor of Gyumri. Notably, Martun Grigoryan broke his five-day silence today, announcing that the Our City bloc of parties will provide Vardan Ghukasyan with the necessary votes without any expectations, positions, or agreements.

Alpha News interviewed political scientist Robert Margaryan about the post-election situation in Gyumri.

“There was also interest in the Gyumri elections within the Diaspora. In fact, we have a serious problem in Armenia with accepting the results of the elections. This culture has not changed in our country. Regardless of the outcome, the voice of the people must be respected,” the political scientist said.

He drew a parallel with Donald Trump, noting that while not everyone views Trump positively, everyone is obliged to respect him as president.

“Vardan Ghukasyan is not an ideal candidate for mayor. But, in any case, this is the people’s choice, and they make the decision. Similarly, in the United States, not everyone perceives Trump positively, but if he was elected, then this choice must be taken into account,” Robert Margaryan concluded.