At least 25% of registered voters needed to vote in favour in order to validate the result.

[1] The constitutional changes would result in the name "Republic of Artsakh" being officially adopted for the unrecognised country and used alongside its current name, as well as in abolishing the office of the Prime Minister and giving more power to the President to make quicker decisions on security.

[2] Levon Galustyan, an MP from the unrecognised country of Abkhazia and an observer at the referendum, said the idea for a name change was brought forward after Nagorno-Karabakh politicians had expressed worry that the use of the name "Artsakh" and "Nagorno-Karabakh" by Azerbaijan for its athletic teams and artistic initiatives abroad might create the wrong impression of the region's reality.

"[4] The government of Azerbaijan, which Nagorno-Karabakh de jure was part of but which had lost de facto control of the region following the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, condemned the referendum calling it a "provocation" and counter-productive for the conflict resolution process.

[5] The government also issued an international arrest warrant for three Members of the European Parliament who acted as observers at the referendum.