Parliamentary elections have begun in Armenia. More than two thousand polling stations opened in the country at 8:00 AM (7:00 AM Moscow time) and will operate until 8:00 PM (7:00 PM Moscow time). Voting is only taking place within Armenia, with no provision for overseas polling stations. Nearly 2.5 million citizens are listed as eligible voters. Eighteen political forces are participating in the vote. The threshold for parties is 4%, for blocs comprising up to three parties it is 8%, and for associations of four or more parties, it is 10%. There is no turnout threshold. Current Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan has already voted. Power dynamics. The main competitors in the parliamentary elections are Pashinyan's "Civil Contract" party (32.4% of voters plan to vote for it), "Strong Armenia" of Russian and Armenian oligarch Samvel Karapetyan (supported by 16.4% of citizens), and the "Armenia" bloc of former president Robert Kocharyan (15.2%). Pashinyan has recently been actively advocating for closer ties with the European Union. Additionally, US President Donald Trump supports him in the elections. Meanwhile, the Kremlin is backing businessman Karapetyan, who is under investigation in Armenia for inciting the overthrow of the government. 🔵 Armenia-Russia relations. Relations between Moscow and Yerevan have deteriorated ahead of the parliamentary elections. Russia criticizes Pashinyan for his course towards closer ties with the European Union. The Armenian prime minister states that the country is ready to leave the CSTO "if necessary." Furthermore, in recent weeks, the Kremlin has banned the import of dozens of categories of goods from Armenia, including fruits, vegetables, strawberries, flowers, and cognac. Russia was one of the main buyers of Armenian products. According to Reuters, Russia intends to send about 100,000 Armenians to Armenia to vote against Pashinyan's party.