YEREVAN -- Thousands of supporters of acting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian have rallied in Yerevan ahead of next month's snap general elections.
Addressing the demonstrators, Pashinian said on November 24 that the movement that came to power in a wave of peaceful street protests last spring "returned power to the people."
Pashinian announced in October he was resigning from the post of prime minister in order to dissolve parliament and force early elections. He has continued to perform his prime-ministerial duties until a new parliament and prime minister are elected.
Pashinian pushed for early parliamentary elections following his bloc's landslide victory in the mayoral race in the capital, Yerevan, in a bid to unseat his political opponents in the Republican Party (HHK), who have maintained a majority in parliament.
Pashinian's My Step alliance, the former ruling HHK, and nine other political parties and alliances are vying for seats in the 101-member National Assembly in the early elections set for December 9.
The campaigning period is to end on December 7, with December 8 to be declared a "day of silence" in which no campaigning will be allowed ahead of the vote.