THE USE OF NEGATIVE POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENTS DURING THE ELECTORAL CAMPAIGN OF THE 2021 SNAP PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA

Abstract

Twenty-five political forces participated in the 2021 snap parliamentary elections, four of which were alliances. Political forces have organized rallies, meetings with voters in Yerevan and in the regions, as well as used political technologies on social media platforms. The electoral campaign was distinguished by the variety of political advertisements. Some political forces have paid special attention to negative advertisements targeting political opponents. Unlike previous campaigns, the number of negative political advertisements had increased significantly. The article particularly refers to the political spots of the "I have honor" and "Armenia" blocs and the "Civil Contract" party, which, unlike other political forces, used more negative advertisements. The analysis showed that the opposition blocs preferred to use negative ads to target Nikol Pashinyan, the candidate for prime minister of the "Civil Contract" party, while the above-mentioned party, on the contrary, used the negative political ads to target the second and third presidents of Armenia, putting emphasis on direct and indirect targeting, creation an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty and discretization of political opponents.