Presses on electoral violations recorded during snap parliamentary elections in Armenia

Alarms about electoral violations were endless throughout election day.

Factor.am sounded the alarm about the fact that voters in Gegharkunik Province were being guided to vote in favor of candidate of the My Step Alliance Haik Sargsyan, who is the Deputy Head of the State Control Service.

“On behalf of Mayor of Gavar Gurgen Martirosyan, former assistant to the mayor Grigor Dashtoyan is terrorizing people to vote for Haik Sargsyan. As a matter of fact, we had received such information a couple of days ago, but the mayor and deputy candidate had refuted it. A short while ago, the citizen who addressed us, told us that Grigor Dashtoyan is particularly terrorizing the employees of institutions under the subordination of the municipality. We asked Mayor of Gavar Gurgen Martirosyan to give a clarification regarding the information. He answered our phone call, listened to us and asked us to call him in a couple of minutes. However, when we tried to contact the mayor of Gavar 10-20 minutes later, another person answered the phone. In a conversation with Factor.am, that person presented himself as the assistant to the mayor by the name of Rudik and stated that the mayor was very busy. It is clear that the mayor avoided answering our questions, explaining that he is very busy on a Sunday,” the website writes.

The data of voter K.T., who is deceased for 2 years already, were found in the electoral list of polling station 8/25 located in School #31 (2 H. Hovsepyan Street). Representative of the office of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun for economic studies and economist Suren Parsyan reported this with a statement posted on Facebook and added that a proxy of the Dashnaktsutyun has recorded this.

At polling station 8/29 (in kindergarten #136, 16 Bagratunyats Street) , a voter placed the envelope in the ballot box without a stamp on the envelope. Later, the voter showed his ballot and left the polling station, warning that he would file an appeal, if his ballot was declared as invalid.

“Military servicemen are going to the elections in line at polling station 27/33 of Argel village and at polling station 16/14 of Armavir of Kotayk Province, and this is a violation of the Electoral Code” — this is the alarm sounded by the Independent Observer organization.

As of 15:00:

At polling station 6/29 in Yerevan, an observer video-recorded several violations of confidential voting; the video shows an anonymous person removing a ballot from the envelope, checking it and placing it in the envelope. Only after that did the voter have the opportunity to place the ballot in the ballot box.

The data of a person helping a person lacking the opportunity to vote independently were not filled in at polling station 22/22 in Spitak.

After voting in the morning, Vice-Chairperson of the National Assembly Arpine Hovhannisyan, who is the second candidate on the proportional list of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), said the following:

“Currently, what is more troubling is the alarms about the dissemination of campaign materials by candidates of the ruling My Step Alliance and the cases of guidance. Voters are guided and shown how to vote or are given the ballots with ballot #4 on top. People received the campaign materials of Davit Sanasaryan in stores and apartments in Kentron Administrative District.”

As to how the candidates of the My Step Alliance were guiding voters, Arpine Hovhannisyan said that they were first guided at the headquarters and shown how to vote in favor of the party led by Nikol Pashinyan, that is, the party on ballot #4. “All the alarms are being compiled and distinguished according to types of violations, after which we will issue a statement,” Arpine Hovhannisyan said. Talking about the participation indicator, she said the following: “Taking into consideration several factors, this indicator was perhaps expected to a certain extent.”

The ballot of the RPA was missing in the packet of ballots at one of the polling stations in Spitak. Voters from the polling station (stationed at School #2 of the city of Spitak) phoned the editorial office of 168.am.

They sounded the alarm that several citizens were surprised when they noticed that the ballot of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) was missing in the packet of ballots as they were taking the packet.

The voters having phoned the editorial office said that only after their complaints would the chairperson and secretary of the electoral commission of the polling station give the ballot of the RPA, meaning the ballot of the RPA was not given intentionally. Citizens believe this is a blatant attempt of guidance, and besides that, it provides members of the electoral commission with the opportunity to reveal those voting for the RPA. They feared that this might be used against them later.

The next alarm was sounded by RPA Deputy Vahram Baghdasaryan.

“We have witnessed an atmosphere of fear at all polling stations,” Vahram Baghdasaryan, nominated as a deputy candidate on the nationwide list of the RPA, declared after voting at polling station 23/03 . He stated that numerous data on electoral violations have been released, particularly stating the fact of guiding citizens and in regard to missing ballots — something that, according to Baghdasaryan, is inadmissible. Baghdasaryan viewed the rhetoric during the pre-election campaign as inadmissible. “Laying people down on the asphalt, throwing people against a wall, cutting people’s hands — such rhetoric is inadmissible. As far as the use of administrative resources is concerned, look at what the incumbent government is doing,” the deputy candidate of the RPA highlighted.

The rating candidate nominated by the My Step Alliance in precinct #1 sounds the alarm about the fact that the booklet of another candidate nominated by the My Step Alliance was brought to the polling station .

“In precinct 2/54 of Nor Nork Administrative District, a voter came to vote with the booklet of candidate of the My Step Alliance Yerjanik Hakobyan in his hand. I felt nostalgia and remembered the previous elections,” Chilingaryan wrote.