Tensions in Gyumri’s local elections reached a boiling point today as law enforcement officers from the Police and the Anti-Corruption Committee raided the headquarters of the “Mother Armenia” alliance.
Authorities also searched the home of Ara Voskanian, a key figure within the alliance responsible for organizational coordination.
The latest crackdown comes just three days before the city heads to the polls, adding to what opposition parties describe as a growing climate of political pressure and intimidation.
Also on March 27, law enforcement launched a large-scale raid on the campaign headquarters of Martun Grigoryan, the mayoral candidate of the “Our City” alliance. According to lawyer Arsen Babayan, the operation disrupted campaign activities and included searches of multiple offices connected to Grigoryan’s team, as confirmed by MediaHub. Babayan also reported that Grigoryan’s son and father have been arrested.
These incidents follow a wave of earlier actions widely seen as targeting opposition figures. On March 20, Ruben Mkhitaryan, the mayoral candidate for the “My Strong Community” party, was summoned by the Investigative Committee in Yerevan over an incident dating back to May 2024.
The interrogation forced him to halt his campaign temporarily. City council candidate Vahe Kirakosyan, also from “My Strong Community,” confirmed the disruption to their campaign efforts.
Even prior to that, on February 20, special forces from Armenia’s Criminal Police detained former Gyumri mayor and current mayoral candidate Vardan Ghukasyan and his bodyguard. Ghukasyan later posted about the incident on social media, alleging that his lawyer was denied access to the regional police department.
“The door of the regional department building has once again been unlawfully closed in front of my lawyer,” he wrote.
Opposition parties and civil society organizations are raising alarms, accusing the government of using state institutions to suppress dissent and manipulate the electoral environment. As voters prepare to head to the polls, concerns over the fairness and transparency of the electoral process continue to mount.
