ArmInfo. For the first time in a long time, free, competitive and consonant with democratic norms elections took place in Armenia. This opinion was expressed at the press conference on December 10 by the director of the anti-corruption center of Transparency International Sonna Ayvazyan, referring to the results of the monitoring of the organization "Independent Observer" on the results of the early parliamentary elections in Armenia.
She explained that 300 polling stations throughout Armenia were selected for monitoring, which is only 15% of the total. However, according to her, the data obtained reflect the general picture of the voting held on the eve. "Observers freely carried out their mission at 98-99% of polling stations," she added. Ayvazyan stressed that for the first time, voters spoke about the lack of pressure from representatives of political forces. The main problem hindering the voting, according to the director of the anti-corruption center, was that in 48% of polling stations there were no conditions for access by persons with limited capabilities.<Elections were held in a peaceful atmosphere, in general, in tune with the law. According to observations, problems related to quality were identified.the work of the election commissions, but in general terms it did not affect the election process, "said Ayvazyan.She explained that this time, due to a change in the monitoring methodology, the main emphasis was placed on significant violations that could affect the results of the vote. In this vein, she noted that, in general, 107 cases of violations at polling stations were registered, in particular, concerning the presence of unauthorized people, violations of the secrecy of the vote, repeated attempts, directed voting, pressure, etc.
In turn, the chairman of the Gyumri club of journalists <Asparez> Levon Barseghian said: <This time, like during the elections to the Yerevan Council of Elders, there were no systemic massive violations, fraud, electoral bribes, accumulations in front of polling stations, pressure through administrative resources, system inaction of law enforcement agencies, which previously took place in significant volumes>. At the same time, he supported Ayvazyan's opinion, noting that, in general, a peaceful atmosphere reigned at the polling stations.The head of the Vanadzor office of the Helsinki Civil Assembly, Arthur Sakunts, noted that in 30 years the parliamentary elections held the day before were the closest to democratic and free voting, in particular from the point of view of registered violations. At the same time, he stressed that from the point of view of the use of administrative resources, the parliamentary elections of this year are not comparable with the 2017 elections.In conclusion, speaking about the registered violations, the head of the "Union of Informed Citizens" public organization, noted that absolutely all the candidates in the National Assembly carried out propaganda in social networks when it was no longer allowed.It should be noted that in the framework of the "Akantes" initiative, which conducted observations during the early parliamentary elections of the Republic of Armenia, held on December 9 of this year. 581 observers participated in 300 polling stations. The mission was attended by 52 mobile teams and 41 territorial observers. Mobile teams visited 503 polling stations. The observational process was facilitated by 30 lawyers and as many operators.