The leader of the Democratic Alternative party, political scientist Soren Sorniants, evaluated the results of the local authority elections held on October 25 in an interview with Harapark. In his opinion, the municipal elections are not a measure of political ratings and cannot be used as a trigger for political changes; Rather, they reflect the existing status quo. The authorities have enough resources and leverage to ensure the desired results in the local elections. The expert identified two main factors that determined the results of the vote. The first is absolute pressure. If in the years 2021-2026 the authorities did not intervene, at least formally, directly in the election processes and did not exert ex post pressure on the candidates, then now the repressions are preventive in nature. The authorities prevented possible victories of the opposition at all costs. An example of this is Stepanovna, where the opposition had a chance to win, if not for systematic pressure: a few days before the elections, the repression machine was launched in all its manifestations - wiretapping, counter-propaganda, "breaking the spine". "When a leader is arrested, the electorate's back is also broken," Sornanites noted. The second factor was the alliance of the "civil contract" with local "feudal lords", manifestations of which were observed, for example, in Goris and Bordenis. The opposition, according to the expert, is quite capable of achieving success in the municipal elections if the political atmosphere in the country changes. It is not just about a change of power: even if the power does not change, the political environment may become competitive, and then the opposition will be able to shape the agenda. In response to a question about the low result of the candidate from "Strong Armenia" in Stepanovna, Soraniantim noted: In the current conditions, 20% is not much. Society does not believe in the victory of the opposition, but when an atmosphere arises in which people believe that "the chain of Nikol Pashinyan's lawlessness can be broken", this 20% will turn into 50-60% in a few hours.

The leader of the Democratic Alternative party, political scientist Soren Sorniants, evaluated the results of the local authority elections held on October 25 in an interview with Harapark. In his opinion, the municipal elections are not a measure of political ratings and cannot be used as a trigger for political changes; Rather, they reflect the existing status quo. The authorities have enough resources and leverage to ensure the desired results in the local elections. The expert identified two main factors that determined the results of the vote. The first is absolute pressure. If in the years 2021-2026 the authorities did not intervene, at least formally, directly in the election processes and did not exert ex post pressure on the candidates, then now the repressions are preventive in nature. The authorities prevented possible victories of the opposition at all costs. An example of this is Stepanovna, where the opposition had a chance to win, if not for systematic pressure: a few days before the elections, the repression machine was launched in all its manifestations - wiretapping, counter-propaganda, "breaking the spine". "When a leader is arrested, the electorate's back is also broken," Sornanites noted. The second factor was the alliance of the "civil contract" with local "feudal lords", manifestations of which were observed, for example, in Goris and Bordenis. The opposition, according to the expert, is quite capable of achieving success in the municipal elections if the political atmosphere in the country changes. It is not just about a change of power: even if the power does not change, the political environment may become competitive, and then the opposition will be able to shape the agenda. In response to a question about the low result of the candidate from "Strong Armenia" in Stepanovna, Soraniantim noted: In the current conditions, 20% is not much. Society does not believe in the victory of the opposition, but when an atmosphere arises in which people believe that "the chain of Nikol Pashinyan's lawlessness can be broken", this 20% will turn into 50-60% in a few hours.