VZCZCXRO5247
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHYE #0395/01 1611327
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 101327Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY YEREVAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9160
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 000395 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O.12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KDEM KJUS AM
SUBJECT:  CEC ANNOUNCES FINAL RESULTS FOR YEREVAN ELECTION 
 
REFS: A) YEREVAN 390 
B)YEREVAN 388 
C) YEREVAN 382 
D) YEREVAN 372 
 
YEREVAN 00000395  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1. (SBU) During a June 7 extraordinary session, the Central Election 
Commission (CEC) announced the final results of Yerevan's May 31 
mayoral election, confirming the preliminary results that it had 
released on June 1.  The CEC found that the recounts it conducted 
after Election Day did not reveal significant irregularities that 
affected the outcome of the election.  The final number of valid 
ballots was found to be 393,516, down from the initial 401,310.  The 
final percentages assigned to the seven contestants in the election 
remained the same as the preliminary count, with the Republican 
Party of Armenia netting 46 percent, Prosperous Armenia 22 percent, 
and the Armenian National Congress 17 percent in their one-two-three 
finish.  Results in only six of Yerevan's 439 polling places were 
invalidated, with the results of 15 polling places having been 
recounted in total.  END SUMMARY. 
 
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FIGURES DIDN'T CHANGE MUCH 
-------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) The CEC reported that the final number of participating 
voters was 404,634, and that the number of valid ballots was 
393,516.  The number of ballots cast for each of the seven election 
contestants was as follows:  the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) 
received 186,630 votes; Prosperous Armenia (PA) 89,131; the Armenian 
National Congress (ANC) bloc 69,140; Rule of Law (OY) 20,106; the 
Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF-Dashnaks) 18,094; the 
People's Party (PP) 8,479; and the Labor Socialist Party of Armenia 
(SLP) 1,936 
 
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15 RECOUNTS PERFORMED 
--------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The CEC and Prosecutor General's Office conducted recounts 
of the results of 15 of Yerevan's 439 polling places.  The CEC 
conducted recounts for eight polling places, while the Prosecutor 
General's Office recounted seven.  Some of the recounts revealed 
serious irregularities, such as the tampering of sacks containing 
ballots and other election-related materials, and a mismatching of 
numbers in ballots, ballot envelopes and voters' signatures. 
 
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RESULTS IN SIX POLLING PLACES INVALIDATED 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) The results of six of Yerevan's 439 polling places were 
invalidated, all in the troubled Malatia-Sebastia district 
(reftels).  Materials from these precincts were sent to the 
Prosecutor General's office for the launch of a criminal case.  In 
addition, three individuals have been arrested in relation to 
election fraud.  Two of them are members of the Precinct Electoral 
Commissions (PECs), or voting precincts.  Altogether, five criminal 
cases have been launched in connection with the 15 PECs whose 
results were recounted. 
 
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ANC SEES ALL OF ITS COMPLAINTS REJECTED 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) On June 7, the CEC rejected the June 5 appeal lodged by the 
ANC requesting the invalidation of the results of the entire 
election (ref B), with six of its eight members voting to reject and 
two voting not to reject (the opposition Heritage and Dashnak 
members voted not to reject the ANC appeal).  According to Garegin 
Azarian, the CEC's Chairman, the appeal contained no basis for 
invalidation, and "the facts presented in the appeal were not duly 
formulated."   Overall, the CEC rejected all of the complaints that 
the ANC filed, many of which had to do with violations allegedly 
committed during the election campaign.  The CEC rejected the 
complaints for various reasons, including incorrectly compiled 
complaints; groundless or invalid arguments; and complaints 
regarding polling station results that had already been invalidated 
or identified by the Prosecutor-General's Office for criminal 
investigation. 
 
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NEW CITY COUNCIL MEETS WITHOUT ANC 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) In its final protocol of the election results, the CEC 
allocated the respective number of seats in Yerevan's new city 
 
YEREVAN 00000395  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
council to the following parties:  35 to the RPA, 17 to Prosperous 
Armenia and 13 to ANC.  The new council held its first session on 
June 8, where it was decided that the top RPA candidate, incumbent 
mayor Gagik Beglarian, will be sworn in as mayor.  It was also 
decided that the new council will hold its next session on June 23. 
The ANC boycotted the meeting, and has announced it will not take up 
the seats it won in the election. 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
ELECTION OBSERVER REFUSES SUMMONS, IS ARRESTED 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶7. (SBU) On June 5, the Special Investigative Service (SIS), which 
has been tasked by the Prosecutor General to investigate 
election-related crimes, summoned an election observer employed by 
the local Helsinki Association (HA) human rights NGO to provide 
testimony on an alleged electoral violation.  The individual refused 
to go, claiming that the written summons had been incorrectly 
formulated.  The SIS reportedly then arrested the observer for 
allegedly "hindering the representative of the authorities in the 
execution of [his] duties."  (Note:  The crime is punishable by fine 
or imprisonment up to 5 years.  End Note.)  According to Mikael 
Danielian, HA's Director, police taunted and beat his employee after 
his arrest. 
 
YOVANOVITCH