Armenian right hope for second or third election place

Text of report by Armenian news agency Snark

Yerevan, 12th May: The electoral bloc OS+ [Self-Determination

Association and Homeland Diaspora] (a political force of a

Christian-Democratic direction) is looking for second or third

place as a minimum in the upcoming elections to be held in

Armenia on 30th May. The leader of the bloc, the well-known

Armenian civil-rights defender and ex-candidate for the

Armenian presidency Paruyr Ayrikyan said today.

He said that OS+ Bloc intended to be "qualitative

minority" in the future Armenian parliament and "to win back"

33 or 34 per cent of votes - 43 or 44 seats - during the

elections.

We note that only 131 deputies will enter the future

Armenian National Assembly - 56 on the first- past-the-post

system and 75 on the proportional system. Ayrikyan thinks that

"qualitative majority" will have 67 per cent of votes (87 or 88

seats) in the future parliament.

Ayrikyan also said that OS+ had already spent about 30,000

dollars on election campaign and intended to spend another

20,000 dollars.

Source: Snark news agency, Yerevan, in Russian 1500 gmt 12 May

99

BBC Mon TCU 130599 mm/vz