Armenia Recounts Votes at One-Third of Polling Stations Following Parliamentary Election
Central Election Commission reports vote adjustments for key parties after recount requested by Strong Armenia bloc.
Following a request by the pro-Russian opposition bloc Strong Armenia, Armenia's Central Election Commission (CEC) conducted a partial recount of votes at 637 out of 2,005 polling stations from the June 7 parliamentary elections. The recount results, announced on June 12, show slight increases in vote counts for all major parties.
Vote Count Adjustments and Impact
The CEC reported that Strong Armenia, led by Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, saw its vote total increase by 508 to 340,088 votes. The Prosperous Armenia party, headed by businessman Gagik Tsarukyan, increased its tally by 147 votes to 58,378. The ruling Civil Contract party of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan gained an additional 1,148 votes, bringing its total to 727,820. The Armenia bloc, led by former president Robert Kocharyan, increased by 217 votes to 145,113.
Overall, the number of voting irregularities detected rose by 230 to 1,509, while invalid ballots decreased by 859 to 16,238. The CEC also invalidated results from three polling stations. Final election results are expected to be certified on June 14.
"The Central Election Commission has completed the vote recount conducted by electoral commissions across 637 polling stations," the commission stated.
Background and Election Context
Strong Armenia initiated the recount after its defeat in the elections, citing alleged voting irregularities and calling the election process "shameful." Its leader, Samvel Karapetyan, has been under house arrest since last year on charges of plotting a coup, which he denies as politically motivated.
On election day, Armenian authorities announced investigations into 59 cases of alleged electoral violations, including multiple voting, leading to at least nine arrests.
The June 7 vote resulted in a decisive victory for Prime Minister Pashinyan's pro-Western Civil Contract party, which secured 49.81% of the vote—an increase from its previous 54% share in 2021. Strong Armenia received 23.29%, the Armenia bloc 9.94%, and Prosperous Armenia 4%. Voter turnout was 58.97%, higher than in 2018 and 2021.
