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A pro-Russian opposition alliance on Friday asked Armenia's Central Election Commission to annul the results of last Sunday's parliamentary election, which was won by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's governing Civil Contract party.
The petition was submitted by the Strong Armenia party, with party member Aram Vardevanyan telling reporters in the capital, Yerevan, that the alliance was challenging the outcome over alleged voting irregularities.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared victory early Monday, saying his Civil Contract party had secured a mandate to govern.
"I extend my gratitude to all my colleagues in the party. We worked day and night, and this is a victory of history. This victory belongs to the Armenian people," he told reporters.
With ballots counted from all 2,005 polling stations nationwide, Civil Contract received 49.82% of the vote, according to preliminary results cited by the state news agency Armenpress and released by Central Election Commission Chairman Vahagn Hovakimyan.
The Central Election Commission is expected to publish the final results on Sunday.
On Thursday, it invalidated the vote at two polling stations, citing a concentration of military personnel at the sites after polls had closed, according to Armenian media reports.
The decision reduced the vote share of another opposition party, Prosperous Armenia, pushing it below the 4% threshold required for parliamentary representation, according to the party's leader.
Opposition groups have also complained about a series of arrests before the election that they said targeted parliamentary candidates and supporters.
An international election observation mission acknowledged allegations of vote-buying and other violations but said voting had proceeded smoothly in most polling stations.
The Strong Armenia party, led by billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, finished second with 23.28% of the vote, followed by former President Robert Kocharyan's Armenia Alliance with 9.93%.
Pashinyan said his government would continue pursuing closer relations with Europe while maintaining ties with Russia.
"We will also continue our membership in the Eurasian Economic Union. We will continue to develop our relations with Russia," he said.
According to the election commission, Armenia has nearly 2.5 million registered voters, with about 1.47 million casting ballots in Sunday's election, representing a turnout of nearly 59%.
A total of 16 political parties and two electoral alliances competed for seats in the country's next parliament, which consists of at least 101 members.
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