Prime Minister of Armenia

Mher Grigoryan

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia () is the head of government and most senior minister within the Armenian government, and is required by the constitution to "determine the main directions of policy of the Government, manage the activities of the Government and coordinate the work of the members of the Government." Also, according to the constitution, the prime minister heads the Security Council, which prescribes the main directions of the country's defense policy; thus, the prime minister is effectively the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Armenia. Nikol Pashinyan is the current prime minister. He took the office on 8 May 2018 following the resignation of Serzh Sargsyan.

History

Original role

The office of prime minister was first established in 1918 with the foundation of the First Republic of Armenia. The prime minister chosen by the National Council of Armenia and was accountable for international, domestic and regional issues. The first Prime Minister became Hovhannes Katchaznouni whose cabinet was made up from five members, all of which were from ARF. In addition, a ministry of interior was created, whose first head was Aram Manukian. It vanished when the First Republic of Armenia was incorporated into the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and then transferred into a full Soviet republic.

Soviet era

The governmental structure of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic was similar to that of the other Soviet republics. The highest executive and administrative organ of state power was the Council of Ministers. The Council consisted of the following positions:

Chairman
Vice Chairman
Chairman of the State Planning Commission
Cabinet Ministers
Representative of the Committee of Agricultural Stocks
Chairman of the Board of Arts
Representative of the All-Union People's Commissariat

Restoration

When Armenia regained its independence in 1991, the office of prime minister was reintroduced. Under the new 2015 constitution, the prime minister is the most powerful and influential person in Armenian politics. The prime minister is appointed by the president of Armenia upon the vote of the National Assembly. The prime minister can be removed by a vote of no confidence in Parliament. In the constitutional referendum held in 2015, citizens voted in favor of transferring Armenia into a parliamentary republic.

Selection

Following a general election, after commencement of the term of the newly-elected National Assembly the president appoints the representative of the party a plurality of seats in the assembly (i.e. the largest party). Factions of the National Assembly are entitled to nominate candidates for Prime Minister within a period of seven days.

Deputy

The principal deputy of the prime minister is the deputy prime minister, the possibility of having more than one deputy prime minister, but no more than three.

Current deputies

{| class="wikitable"

!Title

!Portfolio/Area of responsibility

!Name

|Deputy Prime Minister

Labor and social affairs
Healthcare
Justice
Civil defense
Environment
Natural resources
Education and science
Culture and sports
Territorial administration and local self-government
Infrastructure

Urban development
Real estate cadastre
State property
Investments
Business environment
Fiscal and budgetary affairs
High-tech industry
Communications
Charity
Civil Service

|Mher Grigoryan

|Deputy Prime Minister

Financial and payment and settlement system
Tax and customs system
External and internal security
Justice
Anti-corruption and judicial
Labor and social issues
Healthcare
Environmental protection
Efficient use of natural resources
Education and science
Youth
Culture and sports
Urban development
Infrastructure

State property and assets
Economy
Investments
Business environment
Foreign economic relations
International trade
High-tech industry
Communication and telecommunications
Public administration
Strategic planning
Public service provision
Human capital development reforms in the public sector
Chief Information Coordinator
E-society
Economy and e-governance

|Tigran Khachatryan

Prime Minister's Office

The Prime Minister's Staff has the task of ensuring the enforcement of the powers vested in the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Ministers, as well as making preparations for Cabinet meetings:

{| class="wikitable"

!Staff Department

! scope="col" |Principal executive

! scope="col" |Incumbent

| rowspan="18" |Prime Minister's Staff

|Chief of Staff

|Arayik Harutyunyan

| rowspan="5" |Deputy Chiefs of Staff

|Armenak Khachatryan

|Artur Hovsepyan

|Sargis Torosyan

|Taron Chakhoyan

|Zaruhi Matevosyan

|Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister

|Hambardzum Matevosyan

|Advisers to Prime Minister

|Artashes Toumanian

| rowspan="2" |Voluntary Advisor

|Aleksandr Avetisyan

|Suren Maghakyan

|Press Secretary

|Nazeli Baghdasaryan

|Chief Protocol Officer

|Suren Varosyan

| rowspan="6" |Assistants to the Prime Minister

|Arsen Mikhaylov

|Artur Grigoryan

|David Gevorgyan

|Gagik Isakhanyan

|Hakob Abrahamyan

|Karine Davoyan

|Relations with the National Assembly

| rowspan="25" |Department Head

|Anahit Stephanyan

|External Relations

|Karen Gasparyan

|Legal

|Hayk Kesoyan

|Programmes Expertise

|Personnel and Human Resources Management

|State and Legal Affairs

|Social Affairs

|Territorial Development and Environmental Issues

|Information and Public Relations

|Financial and Accounting

|Financial-Economical

|Regulatory Impact Assessment

|Applications, monitoring and evaluation of citizen feedback

|Administrative Service

|Protocol Division

|Protocol Department

|First Division

|Mobilization Preparations and Mobilization Programmes Division

|General Division

|Division of Pardons, Citizenship, Awards and Titles

|Security Council Bureau

|Civil Service Bureau

|Inspection Bodies’ Coordination Bureau

|Public Council Secretariat

|Office of the Representative on international legal matters

Bodies subordinate to the Prime Minister

National Security Service
Foreign Intelligence Service
State Protection Service
State Supervisory Service

List of officeholders (1991–present)

Since the country's independence, it has had 16 prime ministers, none of whom were women.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! colspan="9" |

! rowspan="2" |

! rowspan="2" width="15%" | Name

! rowspan="2" | Portrait

! rowspan="2" | Political party

! colspan="2" rowspan="2" width="25%" | Term of office

! rowspan="2" | Election

! colspan="2" | Government

! Composition

! style="background:; color:black; border-bottom:solid 0 gray;" | 1

| rowspan="2" | Vazgen Manukyan

| rowspan="2" | 90px

| rowspan="1" | PANM

| 13 August 1990 || 25 September 1991

| rowspan="5" | 1990

| rowspan="2" | Vazgen Manukyan government|

| rowspan="1" |

! style="background-color:; color:white; border-top:solid 0 gray;" |

| NDU

| 25 September 1991 || 22 November 1991

| |

! style="background:; color:black;" | 2

| Gagik Harutyunyan

| 90px

| Independent

| 22 November 1991 || 30 July 1992

| | :fr:Gouvernement Gagik Haroutiounian|

| rowspan="3" |

! style="background:; color:black;" | 3

| Khosrov Harutyunyan

| 90px

| Independent

| 30 July 1992 || 2 February 1993

| | :fr:Gouvernement Khosrov Haroutiounian|

! rowspan="2" style="background:; color:black;" | 4

| rowspan="2" | Hrant Bagratyan

| rowspan="2" | 90px

| rowspan="2" | PANM

| 2 February 1993 || 26 July 1995

| | :fr:Gouvernement Bagratian I|

| 26 July 1995 || 4 November 1996

| rowspan="4" | 1995

| | :fr:Gouvernement Bagratian II|

| rowspan="2" |

! style="background:; color:black;" | 5

| Armen Sarkissian

| 90px

| Independent

| 4 November 1996 || 20 March 1997

| | :fr:Gouvernement Armen Sarkissian|

! style="background:; color:black;" | 6

| Robert Kocharyan

| 90px

| Independent

| 20 March 1997 || 10 April 1998

| | :fr:Gouvernement Kotcharian|

| |

! style="background:; color:black;" | 7

| Armen Darbinyan

| 90px

| Independent

| 10 April 1998 || 11 June 1999

| | :fr:Gouvernement Darbinian|

| |

! style="background:; color:white;" | 8

| Vazgen Sargsyan

| 90px

| RPA

| 11 June 1999 || 27 October 1999

| rowspan="3" | 1999

| | :fr:Gouvernement Vazgen Sargsian|

| rowspan="2" |

! style="background:; color:white;" | 9

| Aram Sargsyan

| 90px

| RPA

| 3 November 1999 || 2 May 2000

| | :fr:Gouvernement Aram Sargsian|

! rowspan="2" style="background:; color:white;" | 10

| rowspan="2" | Andranik Margaryan

| rowspan="2" | 90px

| rowspan="2" | RPA

| 2 May 2000 || 25 May 2003

| | :fr:Gouvernement Margarian I|

| |

| 25 May 2003 || 25 March 2007

| rowspan="3" | 2003

| rowspan="2" | :fr:Gouvernement Margarian II|

| rowspan="3" |

! style="background:; color:white;" | —

| rowspan="2" | Serzh Sargsyan

| rowspan="2" | 90px

| rowspan="2" | RPA

| 25 March 2007 || 4 April 2007

! style="background:; color:white;" | 11

| 4 April 2007 || 7 April 2008

| |:fr:Gouvernement Serge Sarkissian I|

! rowspan="3" style="background:; color:white;" | 12

| rowspan="3" | Tigran Sargsyan

| rowspan="3" | 90px

| rowspan="3" | RPA

| 9 April 2008 || 6 May 2012

| 2007

| | :fr:Gouvernement Tigran Sarkissian I|

| |

| 6 May 2012 || 19 April 2013

| rowspan="4" | 2012

| | :fr:Gouvernement Serge Sarkissian I|

| rowspan="2" |

| 19 April 2013 || 13 April 2014

| | :fr:Gouvernement Serge Sarkissian I|

! style="background:; color:white;" | 13

| Hovik Abrahamyan

| 90px

| RPA

| 13 April 2014 || 8 September 2016

| | Abrahamyan government|

| |

! rowspan="2" style="background:; color:white;" | 14

| rowspan="2" | Karen Karapetyan

| rowspan="2" | 90px

| rowspan="2" | RPA

| 13 September 2016 || 18 May 2017

| | Karapetyan government|

| rowspan="4" |

| 18 May 2017 || 17 April 2018

| rowspan="4" | 2017

| | Karapetyan government|

! style="background:; color:white;" | 15

| Serzh Sargsyan

| 90px

| RPA

| 17 April 2018 || 23 April 2018

| rowspan="2" | Second Serzh Sargsyan government|

! style="background:; color:white;" | —

| Karen Karapetyan

| 90px

| RPA

| 23 April 2018 || 8 May 2018

! rowspan="3" style="background:; color:white; border-top:solid 0 gray;" | 16

| rowspan="3" | Nikol Pashinyan

| rowspan="3" | 90px

| rowspan="3" | Civil Contract

| 8 May 2018 || 14 January 2019

| | First Pashinyan government|

| |

| 14 January 2019 || 2 August 2021

| 2018

| | Second Pashinyan government|

| |

| 2 August 2021 || Incumbent

| 2021

| | Third Pashinyan government|

| |

Notes

     α.    Assassinated while in office in the 1999 Armenian parliament shooting.

     β.    Died of heart attack while in office.

References

External links

Historical Overview – Former Prime Ministers – The Government of Armenia