Sargsyan taking lead in disputed polls – foreign media outlook
Photo by Photolur
Leading international media outlets have turned a spotlight on the Armenian presidential election, highlighting the major candidates’ results and questioning the legitimacy of the process.
“With ballots from all precincts now counted, Mr Sarkisian received nearly 59% of the vote. His closest rival, Raffi Hovannisian, took nearly 37%,” BBC News reports, referring to Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly’s latest concerns over the major political parties’ decision not to join the election because of the existing lack of trust.
It notes that the major issue in the pre-election period was the country’s economy.
“Although the economy grew about 7% in 2012, unemployment stands at 16% and more than 30% of the population live below the poverty line.
The country has found it difficult to escape from poverty, partly because of a trade blockade imposed by neighbouring Turkey and Azerbaijan since the 1990s war with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh.”
Al Jazeera has addressed the election violations observed by the representatives of Raffi Hovhannisyan.
“Hovannisyan's camp has alleged a range of electoral violations, including the use of "vanishing ink" to allow multiple voting and "caravans" of taxis and buses to take pro-government voters to the polls.
However Eduard Sharmazanov, spokesman for Sargsyan's ruling Republican Party, said exit polls showed the president "was the only favourite" and called the vote "the best in the history of independent Armenia", rejecting allegations of fraud,” it says.
In an article entitled, Armenian president wins in disputed polls, Agence France-Presse notes that leading politicians, such as the Prosperous Armenia party’s chief, Gagik Tsarukyan, and first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan refused to run, thus increasing the incumbent’s chances.
“The outcome had become predictable back in December when the highly popular leader of the Prosperous Armenia party -- super-rich former arm-wrestling champion Gagik Tsarukian - said he was out of the race and Armenia's first post-Soviet president Levon Ter-Petrosian said he was too old for the country's top job.
The election was clouded both by the lack of strong opposition to the incumbent, and a mysterious assassination attempt against Hayrikyan last month.
The authorities were hoping for a peaceful process that would improve the country's chances of European integration,” reports the agency.
Reuters says, in latest analyses, that the exit poll and initial results showed allegations of fraud and the lack of a serious opposition challenge.
“Police said they had received at least 70 reports of voting violations after a campaign in which one of the outside candidates was shot and wounded. The opposition Heritage Party said many ballots cast for opposition parties had been thrown out, but did not say whether it would challenge the result,” reads the report.
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