AKIPRESS.COM - The Armenian parliament has elected opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan as the country's new prime minister, signaling an end to weeks of political turmoil in the former Soviet republic.

Pashinyan, a former journalist and leader of the opposition Civil Contract party, won 59 votes in the legislature, with 42 against him.

Mass demonstrations led by Pashinyan's movement forced the resignation of veteran leader Serzh Sargsyan two weeks ago.

Sargsyan, who had previously served as Armenian president for 10 years, was appointed prime minister on April 17. Thousands of protesters hit the streets of the capital city Yerevan to demonstrate against what they saw as a power grab.

Under constitutional changes Sargsyan promoted in 2015, the prime minister became more powerful than the president, leading to concerns of authoritarian rule descending on the small nation, which borders Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran and Georgia, CNN reported.