Page "Politics of Armenia" Paragraph 4

The Government of Armenia's stated aim is to build a Western-style parliamentary democracy as the basis of its form of government.

However, international observers have questioned the fairness of Armenia's parliamentary and presidential elections and constitutional referendum since 1995, citing polling deficiencies, lack of cooperation by the Electoral Commission, and poor maintenance of electoral lists and polling places.

For the most part however, Armenia is considered one of the more pro-democratic nations in the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Observers noted, though, that opposition parties and candidates have been able to mount credible campaigns and proper polling procedures have been generally followed.

Elections since 1998 have represented an improvement in terms of both fairness and efficiency, although they are still considered to have fallen short of international standards.

The new constitution of 1995 greatly expanded the powers of the executive branch and gives it much more influence over the judiciary and municipal officials.