Aytsemnik Ohanyan: “It is up to Vanadzor residentes to make a decision”

In Vanadzor local elections to be held on October 2d, the only party “list of  which is headed by a female is “Prosperous Armenia” In fact, the PAP originally planned another candidate for mayor  but the discussions and the survey showed  in the third largest city of Armenia, that doctor Aytsemnik Ohanyan is quite popular and respected authority figure and the choice fell on her nomination.

Mrs. Ohanyan told WomenNet that participation in the political process is not something new for her, in the mid-1990s she was a member of the council, then run again, but did not receive enough votes. She says that the town is not accustomed to female council members, and not everybody is  ready to see a woman mayor.

“People are accustomed to female eldermen, and I’ve been a council member, doctor Kalantaryan has been represented for many years. But female mayor is difficult and not only in Vanadzor, in Armenia in general. Therefore, there has never been a woman mayor in the Republic”,- she said.

Full text in Armenian