
ArmInfo. Approximately 130,000 citizens who participated in the regular parliamentary elections in Armenia on June 7 chose the ruling Civil Contract party under duress, trying to escape personal, financial, social, psychological, and other issues. This is how the "Country to Live" party responded to the preliminary vote count results on its Facebook page.
The party recalled that the parliamentary elections in Armenia were marked by numerous violations of the Electoral Code and essentially do not reflect the will of the people. "Throughout the election campaign and in the preceding months, government officials exerted pressure on voters through dismissals, arrests, and other threats, particularly against those who personally or whose family members were in any way involved in the opposition's electoral activities. Opposition candidates and those responsible for campaign headquarters were unjustifiably arrested, detained, and summoned for lengthy interrogations with the aim of ousting them from the electoral process," the party asserts.
Furthermore, the party noted that although government officials were on vacation, they continued to speak in official positions during the election campaign, indirectly fulfilling their duties. "The Public Television of Armenia (PTA) systematically campaigned against opposition forces during and before the election campaign, repeating the propaganda messages of pro-government online publications. On election day, pressure was exerted on voters' free choice at and near many polling stations, in the presence of government representatives. Although the voting process itself at the polling stations was largely legal, according to our analysis and estimates, at least 130,000 citizens who participated in the elections chose the ruling party under duress, avoiding personal, financial, social, psychological, and other problems," the "Country to Live"party reported.
It was noted that these violations were also recorded by the OSCE observation mission. They had a significant impact on the election results. "Had the elections been free and fair, the ruling party would not have been able to secure a majority of seats. Therefore, the "Country to Live" party considers the government formed based on the results of the parliamentary elections illegitimate," the party concluded.