EU calls on Armenian authorities to amend election-related legislation in line with OSCE/ODIHR's recommendations

YEREVAN, February 20. / ARKA /. In a joint statement Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Stefan Fule, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy, encouraged today the Armenian authorities to undertake an inclusive and transparent process of amendments to the election-related legislation, in line with the OSCE/ODIHR's recommendations following the parliamentary elections of May 2012."

“We have taken note of the preliminary results of the presidential elections held in Armenia on 18 February, and welcome the statement of preliminary findings and conclusions of the

International Election Observation Mission on the conduct of elections. We welcome further progress made by the Armenian authorities in their efforts to hold these presidential elections in line with international standards, notably through improved administration of the electoral process, ensuring possibilities for candidates to campaign freely and better quality of the voter lists,’ they said, adding also that at the same time, they expect a number of outstanding concerns to be followed up appropriately in the future, including reported instances of partiality by public servants, claims of misuse of administrative resources, unclear interpretation of campaign financing provisions and cases of pressure on voters.

According to the preliminary results of the February 18 polls, Armenia’s incumbent president Sezrh Sargsyan won re-election with 861,378 votes or 58.64% of the vote. Raffi Hovannisian polled 539,674 votes or 36.74%, Hrant Bagratyan - 31,643 votes or 2.15%, Paruyr Hayrikyan - 18,093 votes or 1.23%, Andrias Ghukasyan - 8,328 votes or 0.57%, Arman Melikyan - 3,520 votes or 0.24% and Vardan Sedrakyan – 6,203 votes or 0.42%. -0-