Manukian: None of opposition presidential contenders to gain over 20% of votes in first round
13.02.2008,
03:26
None of the opposition candidates for presidency has chances to gain more than 20% of votes in the first voting round in Armenia, the leader of Armenia’s National Democratic Union presidential contender Vazgen Manukian told journalists Tuesday.
YEREVAN, February 12. /ARKA/. None of the opposition candidates for presidency has chances to gain more than 20% of votes in the first voting round in Armenia, the leader of Armenia’s National Democratic Union presidential contender Vazgen Manukian told journalists Tuesday.
In the event of unbiased evaluation and if no election frauds occur, the current authorities will not be able to win in the first round despite the certain percentage of the electorate and the administrative resources they have, Manukian said.
He also ruled out the possibility of any opposition candidate winning in the first round, which will lead to a runoff.
Whatever way the electorate votes one of the opposition candidates, anyway, will appear in the runoff, Manukian said. As the first round cannot provide a victory to any of the candidates, distribution of the votes will be more balanced, he added.
According to Manukian, only 4-5 candidates of the 9 contenders for presidency have their stable electorate. Any attempt to announce a winner ahead of time is a bluff to attract votes of other opposition candidates, Manukian said.
He also said that an opposition candidate may win in the runoff only if the opposition and the people unite around his candidacy. In this context, it should be assessed who may lead to greater consolidation in the runoff, Manukian said.
The presidential elections are to be held in Armenia on February 19.–0—
In the event of unbiased evaluation and if no election frauds occur, the current authorities will not be able to win in the first round despite the certain percentage of the electorate and the administrative resources they have, Manukian said.
He also ruled out the possibility of any opposition candidate winning in the first round, which will lead to a runoff.
Whatever way the electorate votes one of the opposition candidates, anyway, will appear in the runoff, Manukian said. As the first round cannot provide a victory to any of the candidates, distribution of the votes will be more balanced, he added.
According to Manukian, only 4-5 candidates of the 9 contenders for presidency have their stable electorate. Any attempt to announce a winner ahead of time is a bluff to attract votes of other opposition candidates, Manukian said.
He also said that an opposition candidate may win in the runoff only if the opposition and the people unite around his candidacy. In this context, it should be assessed who may lead to greater consolidation in the runoff, Manukian said.
The presidential elections are to be held in Armenia on February 19.–0—
