Citizen’s Decision ( hy, Քաղաքացու որոշում, translit=K՛aghak՛atsu voroshum, abbreviated hy, link=n, label=none, ՔՈ, translit=K՛O, lit=Your), also known as the Citizen’s Decision Social-Democratic Party, is an

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ...

social-democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote s ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

founded in November 2018 by a group of left-leaning activists following the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution ( cs, Sametová revoluce) or Gentle Revolution ( sk, Nežná revolúcia) was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations agains ...

. The party traces back its origin to the 2012 Mashtots Park Movement.

History

The party currently acts as an extra-parliamentary force. The party participated in the 2018 parliamentary election, winning just 0.68% of the vote. During the election campaign, the party voiced criticisms of Prime Minister

Nikol Pashinyan Nikol Vovayi Pashinyan ( hy, Նիկոլ Վովայի Փաշինյան, ; born 1 June 1975) is an Armenian politician serving as the prime minister of Armenia since 8 May 2018. A journalist by profession, Pashinyan founded his own newspaper in 1 ...

for alleged shortcomings and advocated reforming the Constitution, the Electoral Code, and instituting transitional justice. In May 2021, the party confirmed it would participate in the

2021 Armenian parliamentary election Snap parliamentary elections were held in Armenia on 20 June 2021. The elections had initially been scheduled for 9 December 2023, but were called earlier due to a political crisis following the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War and an alleged attempte ...

s. Following the election, the party won just 0.30% of the popular vote, failing to win any seats in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

. In November 2021, the party participated in municipal elections in the city of

Dilijan Dilijan ( hy, Դիլիջան) is a spa town and urban municipal community in the Tavush Province of Armenia. The town is one of the most important resorts in Armenia, situated within the Dilijan National Park. The forested town is home to numer ...

, winning 2 seats in the Dilijan city council.

Ideology

The party advocates for the

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitab ...

redistribution of wealth Redistribution of income and wealth is the transfer of income and wealth (including physical property) from some individuals to others through a social mechanism such as taxation, welfare, public services, land reform, monetary policies, conf ...

environmentalism Environmentalism or environmental rights is a broad Philosophy of life, philosophy, ideology, and social movement regarding concerns for environmental protection and improvement of the health of the environment (biophysical), environment, par ...

universal healthcare Universal health care (also called universal health coverage, universal coverage, or universal care) is a health care system in which all residents of a particular country or region are assured access to health care. It is generally organized ar ...

free education Free education is education funded through government spending or charitable organizations rather than tuition funding. Many models of free higher education have been proposed. Primary school and other comprehensive or compulsory education is fr ...

gender equality Gender equality, also known as sexual equality or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making; and the state of valuing d ...

, support of

trade unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (s ...

, and direct democracy. In addition, the party advocates for self-determination of the

Republic of Artsakh Artsakh, officially the Republic of Artsakh () or the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (),, is a breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Artsakh controls a part of the former ...

, establishing peace in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...

region and maintaining neutral relations with

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

. Some party members have called for the renegotiation of agreements between Armenia and Russia, in particular, the presence of the Russian military base in Armenia.

Electoral performance

In the

2018 election The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2018. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. Africa *2018 Djiboutian parliamentary election 23 February 2018 *2018 Sierra Leonean general elect ...

, the party won 8,530 votes or 0.68% of the total vote. The party won 1.3% in Arabkir and 1.2% in

Kentron Denel Dynamics, formerly Kentron, is a division of Denel SOC Ltd, a South African armaments development and manufacturing company wholly owned by the South African Government. It underwent a name change from Kentron to Denel Aerospace Systems du ...

districts of Yerevan. Outside the capital, it had above-average support in the province of Tavush, especially in the regional center

Ijevan Ijevan ( hy, Իջևան) is a town and urban municipal community in Armenia serving as the administrative centre of the Tavush Province. It is located at the center of the region, at the foot of Ijevan ridge of Gugark Mountains, on the shores of ...

(2.8%) and the village of Yenokavan (28.6%). The latter was explained by the endorsement of the party and speculated financial support by Tigran Chibukhchyan, the owner of Yell Extreme Park based in Yenokavan.

Parliamentary elections

Activities

In November 2020, Suren Sahakyan along with the leaders of the

Democratic Party of Armenia The Democratic Party of Armenia ( hy, Հայաստանի Դեմոկրատական Կուսակցություն, ''Hayastani Demokratakan Kusaktsutyun'') is a democratic socialist political party in Armenia. It was established in 1991 by Aram Gasp ...

and the Armenian Constructive Party met with President

Armen Sargsyan Armen Vardani Sarkissian ( hy, Արմեն Վարդանի Սարգսյան; also written as Sarksyan and Sargsyan) (born 23 June 1952) is an Armenian politician, physicist and computer scientist who served as the 4th president of Armenia from 9 A ...

to discuss the political situation in Armenia and the

Nagorno-Karabakh conflict The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is an ethnic and territorial conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, inhabited mostly by ethnic Armenians, and seven surrounding districts, inhabited mostly by Azerba ...

. On 26 February 2021, the Citizen's Decision party held a joint rally with the National Democratic Pole in Yerevan.

References

External links

Citizen's Decision
on Facebook {{Armenian Political Parties 2018 establishments in Armenia Political parties established in 2018 Social democratic parties in Armenia