ArmInfo.The opposition could have achieved success at the local elections if it had consolidated, Solidarity Party member Stepan Margaryan told reporters on October 3.
He noted that Solidarity was negotiating with the political forces running in the local elections in Gyumri and Vanadzor to conduct a joint fight against the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), however, it failed to gain tangible results. "Generally, we are pleased with our results in Gyumri and Vanadzor, because we started our race a month before the elections," he stressed. He noted that these elections have tested the party's potential on the threshold of the parliamentary elections of 2017.
Margaryan added that during the voting process he noticed a number of violations. In the meantime, he refuted the Armenian media reports that Solidarity was distributing electoral bribes. "Such statements are ridiculous," he said.
To note, by the preliminary data, candidates from the RPA obtained the biggest number of votes in both Gyumri and Vanadzor. In Gyumri, the incumbent mayor Samvel Balasanyan received 34.64% of votes. The candidates nominated by the following political forces rank next: Prosperous Armenia - 21.7%, Armenian Rebirth - 10.62%, GALA - 10.49%, Solidarity - 5.77%, Spirit of Gyumri - 5.74%, ARF Dashnaktsutyun - 5.36%. In Vanadzor, the RPA obtained 37.55% of votes, Prosperous Armenia - 27.54%, Armenian Rebirth - 13.27%, ARFD - 6.37%, while Solidarity, Armenian National Congress and Civil Contract failed to cross the 5% threshold.