A representative of Prosperous Armenia Party and an electoral commission member engaged in a scuffle at poling station 6/01 after its closure.

ArmInfo's correspondent reports that Prosperous Armenia had two proxies at the station. During the vote counting process the proxy of Barev Yerevan bloc demanded that one of them leave the area but one of the proxies said he would stay as an observer. The conflict started when a member of the local electoral commission told him to go.

 53.53% of voters voted in today's elections into Yerevan's Elders Council.

According to Chairman of the Central Electoral Commission of Armenia Tigran Mukuchyan, in Achapnyak community the turnout was 61.20% (49,954), in Avan 59.32% (22,459), in Arabkir 52.83% (49,526), in Davidashen 54.3% (16,923), in Erebuni 50.96% (46,337), in Center 47.79% (44,471), in Malatia-Sebastia 44.9% (46,278), in Nor Nork 54.72% (53,665), in Nork Marash 62.33% (6,308), in Nubarashen 59.95% (4,669), in Shengavit 59.49% (66,750), in Kanaker-Zeitun 52.22% (29,681).

 The results of elections to the Elders' Council of Yerevan are currently being summed up at the Campaign Headquarters of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA).

Armenian President, RPA Leader Serzh Sargsyan has just come to the RPA Campaign Headquarters.  Candidate for mayor of Yerevan Taron Margaryan and the leadership of the Headquarters have been here since early morning. At the moment the President and the leadership of the RPA Campaign Headquarters are holding consultations, which may be followed by a statement for the mass media. The RPA Executive Body will hold an extraordinary session on May 6, at 6 pm, to finally summarize the election results. The Executive Body may also discuss the staff and format of the new Government of Armenia.

The ruling Republican Party of Armenia will stuff ballots and pressure the opposition during the vote counting process, says Barev Yerevan bloc.

"They will be especially active in Avan, Malatia-Sebastia, Davidashen and Erebuni communities. So, we urge all opposition forces to be vigilant and the police to prevent any attempts to rig the ballot," says the bloc.

During the voting both mass media and NGOs reported numerous instances of fraud, ballot staffing, carousel voting and bribery.

22 voters "have misappropriated" the flat of Anush Chubaryan, a resident of Yerevan. Chubaryan says that when she came to the polling station to vote, she discovered that 22 unknown persons had been registered in Nalbandyan Str., 104, which is Chubaryan's address.    

Another alarm of violation comes from ARF Dashnaktsutyun Campaign Headquarters. The ARFD's hotline has received a signal saying that two days ago one of the residents of Davidashen administrative district received the booklets of the incumbent mayor Taron Margaryan. The booklets contained a "bonus", which was a utility bill paid for the citizen.

According to the data published by the Central Electoral Commission of Armenia, as of 5 pm the voter turnout at the elections to the Yerevan Elders' Council was 44.95%, or 366,982 voters.

In particular, the turnout in Ajapnyak administrative district was 53.33% (43,533), Avan - 51.56% (19,522), Arabkir - 43.93% (41,184), Davidashen - 45.54% (14,193), Erebouni - 42.03% (38,221), Kentron - 39.16% (36,444), Malatia-Sebastia - 35.35% (36,431), Nor Nork - 46.89% (49,990), Norm Marash - 53.09% (5,373), Nubarashen - 51.86% (4,039), Shengavit - 50.66% (56,851), Kanaker-Zeytun - 44.36% (25,211).

 Electoral fraudsters have invented a new way to rig the elections to the Elders' Council of Yerevan.   

The hotline of ARF Dashnaktsutyun Party reports that at the polling station located at a school in Silikyan Street the voters give their passports to strangers, who vote by these passports and return them with money. Unfortunately, the hotline does not specify which of the parties has invented the "passport merry-go-round".

Vote for candidate of your choice, US Ambassador to  Armenia, John Heffern, said in his blog. 

He wished good luck political parties participating in the Yerevan municipal elections.

"Voting Day in Yerevan. Good luck to all parties, all candidates and all Yerevan voters. Vote today, vote for candidate of your choice!", - he tweeted.

 The Armenian Police are preparing materials to institute criminal cases on 31 violations of the electoral legislation, the website of the Police says.

In particular, the matter concerns bribery, posing obstacles to video recording, scuffles among the opposition and pro-power parties, multiple voting, etc. 

The Situation Analysis Center of the Central Electoral Commission of Armenia checked 40 alarms received from the citizens. The Center reports that most of the alarms had nothing to do with the reality.

 Scuffle happened at the ballot station 7/25 between representatives of Prosperous Armenia Party and members of electoral commission, 5 May.

The PAP representative entered the ballot stations and tried to hinder the course of the election. Chairman of the electoral commission asked him to leave, as he did not have a right to stay there without registration. They started arguing inside the ballot station, then left it and continued the
scuffle. Moreover, in Nor-Nork representatives of the PAP were bribing voters (10 000 drams).

The headquarters of "Barev, Yerevan" bloc reported, that at the ballot station  8/23, RPA was dishing out bribes 20 000 drams to residents of houses near the school after Bleyan and a secondary school N 27 after Tumanyan. "Together with bribes RPA members also give pens so that to control votes", - the statement says.

As of 15,00 PM, the Police received 18 signals about fraud.

 Businessman Samvel Alexanyan, MP from the ruling Republican Party (RPA), visited the polling station 8/8, where the RPA proxies behaved rather aggressively against the observers and journalists. Alexanyan said that he will personally deal with the impetuous "young RPA members" in case they exert pressure on the journalists and observers. "If I once again receive a call about violations, let none of you take offence", Alexanyan said to the RPA proxies.

 "As we have promised, if we come to power, we will transfer it to the people," Vahagn Khachatryan, who tops the Armenian National Congress Party list, told media after voting.

"I have already alarmed of mass election violations, particularly, of crowds near polling stations, atmosphere of fear, and fraud," he said.

Khachatryan praised the Police for quite operative response to all incidents.

Civil Society Institute has issued a statement alarming of tense atmosphere in the course of elections to the Elders' Council of Yerevan.

Citing observers, the CSI alarms of psychological and physical pressure on the participants in the voting process mainly outside the polling stations where police officers are passive. In this light, CSI urges the Central Electoral Committee to operatively response to the alarms of election violations and take steps not to allow unauthorized persons to polling stations.

To inform of election fraud, one can contact the Civil Society Institute via Hot Line number: 080-080-804.

By data of the Armenian CEC, voter turnover as of 2:00 PM was 33.55% - 273.898 voters.

In particular, the turnout in Ajapnyak community totaled 41.71% (34,050), Avan - 40.34% (15 273), Arabkir - 30.93% (28,994), Davtashen - 33.79% (10 531), Erebuni - 32.02% (29 117), Kentron - 27,66% (25 744), Malatia-Sebastia - 25.51% (26 292), Nor Nork - 35.65% (34, 960), Nork-Marash - 39.81% (4029), Nubarashen - 38.08% (2966), Shengavit - 38.15% (42 806), Kanaker-Zeytun - 33.67% (19 137).

 Armenian National Congress has reported about election fraud at ballot station 3/19.

As an agent of ANC reported, after the loting and putting stamps at ballots, chairman of the electoral commission (RPA member) took all the three stamps and left the ballot station 3/19. Representatives of the commission phoned at the territorial ballot station 3 and said about possible election fraud as the RPA member took all the three stamps outside the ballot station 3/19. They demanded to put the forth additional signature at the ballots in order to avoid fraud. However, they were refused, as it is violation of the law.

Another case happened at Nor-Nork administrative district. The Hot Line of ARFD received a signal from the ballot station 1/28, where crowding of Javakhk residents was noticed. It was cleared out that they were registered in Yerevan in April of the current year.

At ballot station 1/30 personal papers were taken away from an agent of ARFD. The overcrowding was noticed at ballot station 2/08, where policemen were prompting voters who to vote for. Representatives of PAP were distributing bribes at all the ballot stations of Nor-Nork.

The Hot Line of Civil Society Institute (080-080-804) has received signals about election fraud over the Yerevan Council of Elders election, 5 May.

In particular, voters are taken to the ballot stations  01/21 and 01/03 by minibuses or even taxi of Z taxi service. At the ballot station 08/20 a woman introducing herself a manager of the home for elderly people, takes these people at the ballot station and without registration helps them to vote. Stamps in the passports of citizens, which voted at the ballot station 07/13, vanished. This gave them an opportunity of revoting.

At the session of the Republican Party of Armenia late in the evening on May 3, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan strongly demanded all the RPA members to avoid any emergency situations in the course of elections to the Elders' Council of Yerevan, Armenian National Assembly President Hovik Abrahamyan told media after voting at the elections today, on May 5. 

He said that the president even banned the Republicans from yielding to any provocations by other political forces running to the Elders' Council of Yerevan.

At the session of the Republican Party of Armenia late in the evening on May 3, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan strongly demanded all the RPA members to avoid any emergency situations in the course of elections to the Elders' Council of Yerevan, Armenian National Assembly President Hovik Abrahamyan told media after voting at the elections today, on May 5. 

He said that the president even banned the Republicans from yielding to any provocations by other political forces running to the Elders' Council of Yerevan.

As of 12:30 PM, Armenian Police are preparing papers on 12 cases of fraud at Yerevan Council of Elders election, 5 May.

As press-service of the Police reported, they received these signals from citizens and ARF Dashnaktiutyun party. They are chiefly about dishing out of bribes, overcrowding of ballot stations and interference of members of the electoral commissions in the voting process

First president of Armenia, Leader of the Armenian National Congress Party Levon Ter-Petrosyan voted at polling station 9/11. 

Ter-Petrosyan told media that those who do not participate in elections have no right to complain.

"Everyone must participate in elections and vote in favor of the candidate they support," Ter-Petrosyan said.

He did not comment on the question about his refusal to run for president in Feb 2013.