Presidential polls close in ArmeniaFebruary 18, 2013 - 20:08 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Presidential polls have been closed in Armenia. At 8 pm local time 1988 polling stations closed in 41 constituencies across the republic, with 1 259 374 (49,81%) voters having cast ballots as of 5 pm. 12 international and 26 local organizations including 632 international and 632 local observers have been monitoring the course of elections. 7 candidates were running for the post of Armenian president: chairman of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), incumbent president Serzh Sargsyan, Heritage party chairman Raffi Hovannisian, leader of Freedom party, former prime minister Hrant Bagratyan, former foreign minister of Nagorno Karabakh Republic Arman Melikyan, National Self-Determination Union party head Paruyr Hayrikyan, Radio Hay director Andrias Ghukasyan and literature expert Vardan Sedrakyan Top stories President of the Armenian parliament Alen Simonyan met with the Speaker of the Azerbaijani Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova. Achieving stable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains a priority of the OSCE, said Ian Borg. The Cabinet of Ministers decided on Thursday, November 9 to allocated AMD 120 million to arrange the gathering. Michael Roth believes sanctions must be put on the table after Baku‘s ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh. Partner news | Lemkin Institute petition seeks release of Armenians in Azerbaijan The Lemkin Institute is deeply concerned about the continued illegal detention of political prisoners from Karabakh in Azerbaijan. Armenian Catholicos calls for national unity against threats Karekin II issued a message on Republic Day marking the anniversary of the First Armenian Republic. Opposition leader, supporters spend night at Sardarapat memorial Police made nearly 300 arrests the day before as Galstanyan and his supporters continued to demonstrate in Yerevan. Armenia designates flood-hit communities as disaster areas The emergency situation was created by floods caused by heavy rains in Armenia’s north on May 25-26. |