Pashinyan or Pashinian, Nikol Vovayi, 1975–, Armenian political leader. A journalist and member of the liberal Civil Contract party, he served two years in jail (2009–11) for organizing protests following the election victory of Serzh Sargsyan over former president Levon Ter-Petrossian. Pashinyan was elected to parliament in 2012, and in 2017 he ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Armenia's capital, Yerevan. In 2018, following weeks of protests he helped organize against Sargsyan, who had become prime minister after term limits forced his resignation as president, Pashinyan was himself chosen as prime minister. He resigned later in 2018 to force new parliamentary elections, in which his coalition won two thirds of the seats.
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