Constitutional Court Standoff

After coming to power through the so-called Velvet Revolution in 2018, Nikol Pashinyan moved to reshape Armenia’s judiciary, arguing it remained under the influence of the former ruling establishment. What began as a clash over judicial independence escalated into a comprehensive dismantling of the Constitutional Court as an independent institution, revealing how anti-corruption rhetoric could become a tool for executive consolidation.

The Initial Confrontation (2019)

The crisis centered on judges appointed during the tenures of Serzh Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan . In May 2019, after the Constitutional Court suspended a trial of Kocharyan on charges of allegedly overthrowing the constitutional order during the 2008 post-election crackdown, Pashinyan called for “mandatory” vetting of judges, characterizing the judiciary—and the Constitutional Court in particular—as a remnant of the “former corrupt regime.” When the Constitutional Court ruled favorably on Kocharyan’s appeals in September 2019, Pashinyan’s parliamentary allies escalated. In October 2019, the My Step Alliance-controlled parliament formally requested the dismissal of Constitutional Court Chair Hrayr Tovmasyan, who had resisted government pressure.

Legislative Ousters (2020)

Pashinyan’s administration initially scheduled a constitutional referendum for April 5, 2020, asking voters to mandate the resignation of the contested judges. The COVID-19 pandemic indefinitely postponed the vote. With the referendum off the table, the government pursued a legislative path: on June 22, 2020, the My Step parliamentary faction bypassed the referendum entirely and passed constitutional amendments directly.

The June 2020 amendments immediately dismissed three judges who had served more than 12 years: Alvina Gyulumyan, Hrant Nazaryan, and Felix Tokhyan. Hrayr Tovmasyan was demoted from his role as Chair, though he remained an ordinary judge. The amendments were adopted just days before Azerbaijan launched the 44-Day War , leaving the political and constitutional fallout largely unexamined.

By September 2020, parliament elected three new judges to fill the vacancies: Yervand Khundkaryan, Arthur Vagharshyan, and Edgar Shatiryan. In October 2020, Arman Dilanyan was elected as the new President (Chair) of the Court. The institutional transformation was underway.

Consolidation of Power (2021–2026)

The pace of change accelerated after May 2021, when the My Step Alliance was dissolved; Civil Contract proceeded to run independently in the June snap elections and won a decisive majority. The party now had unfettered control to reshape the court.

By September 2024, the government moved against Tovmasyan himself, convicting the former chair of abuse of power. Though he was exempt from sentencing due to the statute of limitations, the prosecution was symbolic: resistance to judicial capture would be punished. In March 2026, parliament appointed former Civil Contract MP Vladimir Vardanyan to the Court. This appointment marked the final step in the transition. As of mid-2026, every sitting judge on the Constitutional Court has been appointed under the Civil Contract government.

Current Court Makeup (as of June 2026)

The court is now composed entirely of post-Velvet Revolution appointees:

• Arman Dilanyan (President)
• Yervand Khundkaryan
• Arthur Vagharshyan
• Edgar Shatiryan
• Artak Zeynalyan
• Davit Khachaturyan
• Hovakim Hovakimyan
• Seda Safaryan
• Vladimir Vardanyan

Weaponization of Anti-Corruption

The Constitutional Court standoff exemplified how anti-corruption rhetoric masked executive consolidation. Pashinyan’s framing of judicial independence as a problem to be “reformed” rather than protected transformed the court from a check on executive power into an instrument of executive will. The dismissals, forced retirements, strategic appointments, and symbolic prosecution of Tovmasyan illustrated a consistent pattern: judicial independence would not be tolerated when it contradicted government interests. The systematic replacement of judges ensured that by 2026, no judge on the court could rule against the government without threatening their own position or that of a colleague appointed under Civil Contract. The Corruption that Pashinyan had promised to combat became embedded in the very institutions meant to constrain it.

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