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RIA Novosti, Russia
May 12 2007
Update: Turnout in Armenia parliamentary polls reaches 45.8%
19:04 | 12/ 05/ 2007
YEREVAN, May 12 (RIA Novosti) - Some 45.8% of more than 2 million
Armenian voters cast their votes in the country's fourth
parliamentary elections by 5 p.m. local time (midday GMT), election
authorities said Saturday.
Twenty-two parties and one election bloc are running for the 131-seat
parliament in Armenia, which will face presidential elections next
spring. About 53 local organizations and six international missions
are monitoring the polls.
Alina Yengoyan, spokeswoman for the Court of Cassation, said the
court had granted 68 complaints from voters who did not find their
names on voter lists.
The Zharangutyun (Legacy) opposition party said it was collecting all
alleged violations associated with the parliamentary elections.
"In the past month, we registered thousands of various violations,
and we intend to name them using verified evidence, which we are
collecting at our information center," said Raffi Ovannisyan, a
former foreign minister and leader of the pro-Western party.
Another opposition party, New Times, accused the head of the National
Security Service, of violating the election law by a televised
statement, which said: "The authorities will not let the minority to
impose its choice on the majority."
"This statement ... is direct pressure on the people of Armenia,
which also seriously violates the Election Code," the party said.
New Times cited other irregularities in the voting process, including
the lack of eligible voters in the lists, votes cast in favor of the
pro-government Republican Party in the absence of those Armenian
voters who are currently staying in Russia.
In the runup to the elections, thousands of opposition supporters
gathered in the streets of Yerevan, the capital, Thursday to protest
against the rule of President Robert Kocharyan and demand his
resignation. The opposition also vowed to resume protests Sunday if
the elections turned out to be fraudulent.
The favorite of the race is the Republican Party (HHK) of Prime
Minister Serzh Sarkisyan, which is running together with
pro-presidential Prosperous Armenia and Dashnatsutyun.
Apart from Zharangutyun and New Times, the major opposition parties
also include Impeachment and Republic.
May 12 2007
Update: Turnout in Armenia parliamentary polls reaches 45.8%
19:04 | 12/ 05/ 2007
YEREVAN, May 12 (RIA Novosti) - Some 45.8% of more than 2 million
Armenian voters cast their votes in the country's fourth
parliamentary elections by 5 p.m. local time (midday GMT), election
authorities said Saturday.
Twenty-two parties and one election bloc are running for the 131-seat
parliament in Armenia, which will face presidential elections next
spring. About 53 local organizations and six international missions
are monitoring the polls.
Alina Yengoyan, spokeswoman for the Court of Cassation, said the
court had granted 68 complaints from voters who did not find their
names on voter lists.
The Zharangutyun (Legacy) opposition party said it was collecting all
alleged violations associated with the parliamentary elections.
"In the past month, we registered thousands of various violations,
and we intend to name them using verified evidence, which we are
collecting at our information center," said Raffi Ovannisyan, a
former foreign minister and leader of the pro-Western party.
Another opposition party, New Times, accused the head of the National
Security Service, of violating the election law by a televised
statement, which said: "The authorities will not let the minority to
impose its choice on the majority."
"This statement ... is direct pressure on the people of Armenia,
which also seriously violates the Election Code," the party said.
New Times cited other irregularities in the voting process, including
the lack of eligible voters in the lists, votes cast in favor of the
pro-government Republican Party in the absence of those Armenian
voters who are currently staying in Russia.
In the runup to the elections, thousands of opposition supporters
gathered in the streets of Yerevan, the capital, Thursday to protest
against the rule of President Robert Kocharyan and demand his
resignation. The opposition also vowed to resume protests Sunday if
the elections turned out to be fraudulent.
The favorite of the race is the Republican Party (HHK) of Prime
Minister Serzh Sarkisyan, which is running together with
pro-presidential Prosperous Armenia and Dashnatsutyun.
Apart from Zharangutyun and New Times, the major opposition parties
also include Impeachment and Republic.