How Armenia’s parliamentary seats are allocated after the election

By Gevorg Tosunyan

Nineteen political forces are competing in Armenia’s June 7, 2026 parliamentary elections. Once voting ends and ballots are counted, Armenia’s Electoral Code determines how votes are converted into seats in the National Assembly — and ultimately who forms the government.

Armenia uses a proportional representation system. Citizens vote for political parties or alliances rather than individual candidates.

Electoral thresholds

To enter parliament, political forces must clear the following thresholds:

Single parties: 4 percent
Alliances of two or three parties: 8 percent
Alliances of four or more parties: 10 percent

If fewer than three political forces clear the threshold, the top three vote-getters still participate in the distribution of seats. This happened in the 2021 snap parliamentary elections, when the third-place “I Have Honor” alliance entered parliament with 5.23 percent of the vote.

How seats are distributed

The National Assembly has a minimum of 101 seats.

Once the parties entering parliament are determined, only their votes are included in the seat allocation process. Mandates are then distributed proportionally.

In simplified terms:

Each party’s vote total is multiplied by 101
The result is divided by the combined vote total of all forces that passed the threshold
The final figure determines the number of seats allocated to each force

The “stable majority” mechanism

Under Armenia’s parliamentary system, a political force normally needs more than 50 percent of seats to form a government.

However, the Electoral Code includes a “stable majority” mechanism designed to ensure stronger governing stability.

If the winning political force receives more than 50 percent of seats but less than 52 percent, it is awarded additional mandates to raise its share to 52 percent and allow it to form a government alone.

If no political force or coalition is able to form a government, Armenia’s Electoral Code allows for a possible second round between the two leading political forces.

How the prime minister is elected

Armenia is a parliamentary republic, meaning the prime minister is chosen by parliament rather than through a direct nationwide vote.

After the election:

The party or coalition controlling a parliamentary majority nominates a candidate for prime minister
The National Assembly votes on the nominee
A simple majority of MPs is required for election

If no political force secures a majority, parties can negotiate to form a coalition government and jointly nominate a candidate.

If coalition talks fail and no government can be formed, Armenia’s Electoral Code allows for a possible second round between the two leading political forces.

The rules governing seat distribution, coalition-building and government formation are laid out in Articles 95 to 102 of Armenia’s Electoral Code.