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OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) conducting observation mission in Armenia, has published an interim report on the early parliamentary elections set for December 9.

The report says that elections are administered by the Central Election Commission (CEC), 38 Territorial Election Commissions (TECs) and 2,010 Precinct Election Commissions (PECs). The CEC is holding regular sessions and reaching decisions collegially and unanimously. No concerns were raised so far about the confidence in the CEC and TECs.

According to the report, preliminary lists have been posted for public scrutiny with a total of 2,577,112 registered voters. By law, after elections, the CEC will scan and publish all signed voter lists and post them on its website. A number of ODIHR Election Observation Mission (EOM) interlocutors expressed concerns about privacy of citizens' data.

The CEC registered candidate lists of nine political parties and two party alliances. All contestants met the 25 per cent gender quota. No concerns were raised about the candidate registration process.

OSCE/ODIHR says the election campaign officially kicks off on 26 November but early campaigning is not prohibited. Party interlocutors expressed confidence to the ODIHR EOM about the possibility to campaign freely, but some raised concerns about potential abuse of state resources, vote-buying and pressure on voters, especially in rural areas. Majority of ODIHR EOM interlocutors voiced concerns about intolerant and inflammatory rhetoric, particularly online.

The report also points to the fact that campaigning by government officials while performing their official duties is prohibited, adding that several political parties claimed in the media and to the ODIHR EOM that a 19 November event when the acting prime minister visited construction sites and attended a town celebration in the Gegharkunik region was an abuse of administrative resources.

It notes that the media are diverse, but many private outlets, including some major TV stations, are perceived as strongly associated with political parties. The public TV, financed by the state budget, continues to be perceived as having a pro-government editorial policy. In addition to the media, the role of social networks is growing rapidly. Facebook, in particular, has become a significant platform for political information and debate.

Some ODIHR EOM interlocutors noted improvements but characterized the public discourse as not conducive to criticism of the acting government, particularly the prime minister.