Yerevan /Mediamax/. Transparency International Anticorruption Center Executive Director Varuzhan Hoktanyan stated today that misuse of administrative resources remains a very significant electoral issue in Armenia in recent years.

Varuzhan Hoktanyan made that statement to the press, while presenting the results of the Monitoring of the Misuse of the Administrative Resources (and other irregularities) in 2017 Parliamentary Elections in Armenia.

According to the Center's Director, "vote buying played the main part in the outcome of the 2017 parliamentary elections".

"By the results of the monitoring, vote buying cases made the majority of the irregularities - 90. Out of those cases, 37 were reported by the journalists and 53 - by local observers," Varuzhan Hoktanyan said. He added that the main vote buyers were the Republic Party of Armenia and the Tsarukyan alliance.

He noted that campaigning by state and community employees in the election offices during working hours was also a common case. Total 59 of such violations were reported.

"There were 53 cases of voter suppression among workers in education and healthcare sectors. 36 cases were reported where the superior staffer forced subordinates to take part in the campaigning or vote for a certain party," Varuzhan Hoktanyan remarked.

The Center used mainly two tools for the monitoring: analysis of media reports and data collection by activists.

The project was carried out from March 5 until April 1.