Nezavisimaya Gazeta: Pashinyan frightened by his own popularity

Over the next few years, Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract party will work to secure fewer votes. This paradoxical promise was made by Nikol Pashinyan after analyzing the local election results. According to him, 90% support can create the illusion of a dictatorship. However, he is not fond of the current opposition, so it will be replaced by a new one, Nezavisimaya Gazeta writes.

Be that as it may, the outcome of the local elections differs drastically from the parliamentary ones. The newspaper recalls that in June, Civil Contract won 49.74% of the vote.

As noted, this time was not without scandals either. For instance, the elections in Stepanavan were preceded by the detention of candidates and supporters from the opposition party "Strong Armenia" in connection with a vote-buying and vote-selling case. Four days before the vote, law enforcement officers detained the party's candidate for community head, Arsen Gevorgyan, along with 13 others; two days later, another 10 people were sent to prison. "Strong Armenia" labeled the detentions as political persecution.

The day before the elections in Yeghegnadzor, members of the "Republic" party were detained—community head David Harutyunyan and his deputy Vardan Avagyan, as well as three other candidates for the council of elders. They were also suspected of vote buying. The same scenario unfolded in Artik and Martuni.