ArmInfo. Gohar Meloyan, legal expert and member of the "Strong Armenia" bloc, has presented violations committed by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's ruling "Civil Contract" party during the June 7 parliamentary election campaign.
On May 29, during a press conference in Yerevan, Meloyan stated that they had received reports that citizens were being urged and forced to remove their ballots from the party they voted for—in this case, Civil Contract. Furthermore, the member of the political force noted, people are being forced to remove their Strong Armenia ballots as proof that they did not vote for that political party. In this regard, Meloyan reminded that such actions are prohibited and may have consequences, as they constitute a violation of the law.
"We have also been informed that citizens, particularly those residing in the regions, are being terrorized and intimidated. They are being told that hidden cameras will be installed inside the voting booths to monitor exactly who an individual votes for. I want to assure everyone that our representatives will be present at all polling stations. Consequently, I guarantee that there will be no unauthorized cameras inside the voting booths or the polling stations themselves, aside from the official ones. This means no one can record which political force you vote for. Therefore, go to the polls and exercise your right," the bloc member stated.
Meloyan also mentioned that violations can be both technical and substantive. Regarding technical violations, she reported that they had documented instances of ruling party supporters tearing down campaign posters belonging to the "Strong Armenia" bloc. As for substantive violations, the legal expert explained that these include infractions related to the abuse of administrative resources. In this regard, she revealed that their investigation into the voter registries uncovered 689 addresses where more than 100 people are officially registered.
In this regard, she reported that they retrieved 689 addresses from the lists, each with more than 100 registered people. "For instance, we found an address with 3,030 registered people," the member of the "Strong Armenia" bloc noted.
In connection with the recorded violations, Meloyan reported, they have already contacted the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Armenia and the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) for clarification and and to ensure that these infractions are officially logged. "The number of violations recorded even before the elections indicates that the current government cannot be re-elected without interfering in the electoral process. That is, they understand perfectly well that they cannot be re-elected without abusing administrative resources. Therefore, our initial goal is to prevent these violations whenever possible," Meloyan stated. In this regard, she presented a portal called "Your Voice," which was created to enable Armenian citizens to report such incidents, including on a confidential basis. Additionally, Meloyan noted that the platform provides essential information regarding the elections and the voting procedure.
"During previous electoral cycles, there were instances where stray ink marks from stamps were discovered on the ballot papers of opposition forces. At that time, many citizens approached the CEC, which subsequently stated that this factor would be taken into account and such ballots would not be deemed invalid. Therefore, I urge Armenian citizens not to remain silent during the upcoming elections and to report such instances immediately. It is completely irrelevant which political force's ballot is affected. Our goal is to flag any and all issues," the bloc member emphasized.
She also demonstrated that the web page features a "Report a Violation" button. "By clicking this button, you can choose exactly how you wish to report an infraction. That is, you can either provide your personal details or submit the report anonymously. Furthermore, you can report violations by calling our hotline at 055-522552," Meloyan concluded.
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