US embassy cable - 04YEREVAN1342

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 001342 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN, EUR/PGI, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, AM 
SUBJECT: REPUBLICAN-BACKED PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATE RUNS 
UNOPPOSED IN SYUNIK PROVINCE 
 
REF: YEREVAN 1337 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED -- PLEASE TREAT ACCORDINGLY 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (SBU) Vahe Hakobian, parliamentary candidate 
endorsed by Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan's 
Republican Party, ran unopposed during parliamentary by- 
elections in the southern province of Syunik on June 
13.  According to preliminary figures announced by the 
Territorial Election Commission, Hakobian won 97 per 
cent of the votes cast in the single-mandate individual 
constituency.  Sources reported to Post observers that 
the other contenders dropped out of the race earlier 
given Hakobian's ties to big business in Syunik 
(through his wealthy and politically prestigious 
father), strong backing from the Republican Party, and 
the fact that Kocharian's elder son Sedrak ran 
Hakobian's election campaign.  End summary. 
 
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HAKOBIAN WINS, HIGH VOTER TURNOUT 
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2. (SBU) Vahe Hakobian, the twenty-seven-year-old 
candidate endorsed by Prime Minister Andranik 
Margaryan's Republican Party, appeared the clear winner 
of an unopposed parliamentary by-election held in 
Armenia's southern province of Syunik on June 13. 
Preliminary figures received from the Territorial 
Election Commission showed that Hakobian won 97 percent 
of 22,345 votes cast in the single-mandate 
constituency.  277 votes were cast against Hakobian, 
and 310 votes were declared invalid.  The commission 
claimed that more than 60 per cent of the province's 
eligible voters took part in the election.  (Note: 
such a high turnout relative to other Armenian 
provinces is not unusual for the politically active 
area of Syunik, a traditional political stronghold for 
President Kocharian and his supporters.  End note.)  A 
team of Embassy staff serving as election monitors 
observed no serious violations or incidents during 
Sunday's voting at 14 polling stations.   According to 
the monitors' internal report, the election was well 
organized and there appeared to be fewer complaints 
regarding inaccuracies in the voters list compared to 
previous elections.  There were no observed nor 
reported incidents of unruly behavior or disturbances 
during the electoral proceedings. 
 
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HAKOBIAN'S CONTENDERS DROP OUT 
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3. (SBU) Hakobian enjoyed the full support of the local 
administration, including newly appointed governor of 
Syunik, Suren Khachatrian, early into the campaign. 
The four opposing bipartisan candidates dropped out of 
the race at various points leading up to June 13, 
leaving Hakobian unopposed.  Local sources told Embassy 
staff that Hakobian's contenders dropped out because 
Hakobian is the son of prominent Syunik businessman 
Maxim Hakobian (the director of the area's largest and 
most successful copper mine in the city of Kajaran). 
They claimed that Hakobian's contenders were not able 
to raise adequate funds for their campaigns and could 
not compete with Hakobian's publicity and grassroots 
network.  Other sources believed that the opposing 
candidates dropped out because they were intimidated by 
the fact that Hakobian's election campaign was run by 
President Kocharian's elder son Sedrak. 
 
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COMMENT 
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4. (SBU) While relatively "uneventful" as predicted by 
analysts (reftel), the June 13 Syunik elections were 
poised to be the first electoral barometer of politics 
in Armenia since the controversial presidential and 
parliamentary elections in Spring 2003.  The elections 
were a sure-bet opportunity for the new Central 
Election Commission Chariman, Garegin Azaryan, to show 
improvement over previous balloting to international 
observers and critics.  He appeared to capitalize on 
the opportunity by traveling to Syunik and was an 
active, albeit quiet presence in the region on June 13. 
Local leaders were quick to portray the elections as 
smooth and "democratic."  Many regional and municipal 
leaders did not view the fact that a single candidate 
remained the race as a strange phenomenon, but rather 
an indication of an orderly political process.  Albeit 
uneventful, the June 13 election definitely proved that 
the power of Kocharian's personality still reigns 
strong in Armenia's Syunik province and that big 
business still commands big portions of the vote for 
Armenia's MPs.  End comment. 
ORDWAY