Narek Karapetyan votes for major change

PanARMENIAN.Net - Narek Karapetyan, the lead candidate of the Strong Armenia party, said he voted in support of “major change and a rebuilding Armenia.”

After casting his ballot in Tashir, Narek Karapetyan, who heads the Strong Armenia party list, outlined his views on the country’s development, social cohesion, and the importance of participation in the elections, Factor.am reports.

“I voted for major change in our country and for a rebuilding Armenia. An Armenia where people are primarily focused on rebuilding their country rather than harming one another, fighting among themselves, or living in constant confrontation. Let us rebuild, finally shake off this atmosphere of division, and begin turning our country into a serious, developing, active state instead of occupying ourselves with conflicts and making life difficult for each other. I also voted for a strong country that future generations can make even stronger, so that we do not continue facing the same problems. In other words, we must change this pattern,” he said.

Responding to a question from a foreign media outlet regarding claims of Russian interference associated with the party, Karapetyan said no such accusations exist.

“There are no accusations at all… there are no such accusations against our party. But there is a major question: are there accusations concerning the Civil Contract party and Turkey? We need to examine that. If our citizens do not take the time to go and vote, their place and their fate will be decided in another way. If you want to determine your own future—the next five years of your life and the country’s overall development—it only takes 10 to 15 minutes. You come, enter, and leave.

That is why our society has one important task today: everyone should go and vote according to their preference, but they must participate. That is very important. Participation in the election is, under these circumstances, our most important civic position, a form of struggle, and even a vision for the future. Take part in the election, draw conclusions from everything that has happened so far, and participate, dear compatriots. It only takes 10 to 15 minutes,” Karapetyan said.

Commenting on reports that Armenian citizens arriving from abroad, particularly from Russia, could be prevented from leaving Armenia and sent to training camps, he described such information as information tactics intended to reduce voter participation.

“All citizens of Armenia have the right to participate in elections; it is their constitutional right, and no one has the authority to obstruct it. The authorities want as few people as possible to participate in the elections. When the overwhelming majority of our compatriots take part, that will be the true expression of the people’s will. This is yet another indication that some want turnout to be low. Let us all participate, express our opinions, and then see the genuine opinion of our people. Everyone will see it,” Karapetyan said.

The regular elections to Armenia’s National Assembly have begun. All 2,005 polling stations across the country opened at 8:00 a.m. The voter register includes 2,485,851 eligible voters. Polling stations will remain open until 8:00 p.m.

A total of 18 political forces are participating in the parliamentary elections: two alliances of parties and 16 individual parties. The electoral threshold is 4% for parties and 8% for alliances.