As Yerevan elects a City Council today, reports on the process are familiar, with widespread allegations of fraud. But, like the five parties and one bloc vying for leadership of the city against the heavily favored ruling Republican Party, accounts are as diverse as affiliation.

Poling stations in the capital opened at 8 a.m., and by mid-morning reporters were receiving calls and witnessing apparent violations. Mostly, complaints centered around mass voting as voters were bussed to poling stations. (Armenia’s Election Code, specifically forbids transporting groups of voters.)

According to the information provided by the headquarters of Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s Armenian National Congress in Yerevan’s southern district of Shengavit, serious violations were committed in two polling stations (11/31 and 11/32) located inside school N97.

According to the opposition bloc’s proxy Volodia Nalbandyan at the polling stations, at around 8.30 am, one person holding a list entered the polling station and brought inside after him about 100 voters one by one who voted (and did not conceal it in the process) in favor of the Republican Party.

Two well-built men dressed as civilians but carrying guns that were well exposed to public viewing as of 9.00 am were reportedly ‘patrolling’ near Shengavit’s polling stations 11/27 and 11/28 situated in school N 110.

Areg Savgulyan, who is in charge of relations with media on behalf of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun), told ArmeniaNow that as of noon the party has not registered any violations.

Likewise the Prosperous Armenia Party told ArmeniaNow they also have no information about violations so far.

Three journalists told ArmeniaNow reporters that they were assaulted by Republican MP Levon Sargsyan’s bodyguards at precinct 09/01 at Nalbandyan School.

Tatev Mesropyan, a reporter working with the pro-opposition Hayk newspaper told ArmeniaNow that she as well as Gohar Veziryan (reporter from the pro-opposition Chorrord Ishkhanutyun paper) and Marine Kharatyan (reporting for the pro-opposition Zhamanak newspaper) were beaten and that Kharatyan’s tape recorder was confiscated.

According to caucasusreports (caucasusreports.wordpress.com)the fight broke out allegedly because the journalists asked Sargsyan why he was voting in that district, though he’s known to live in Arabkir. He retorted that he has several houses and he can choose where he wants to vote. Sargsyan had left, but others were there.

Mikhael Samvelyan, the precinct chairman, told a caucasusreports reporter that the journalists “started the fight and shouldn’t have asked stupid questions.”

An ArmeniaNow reporter witnessed voters being delivered via several minibuses in Yerevan’s Malatia –Sebastia. As one of the drivers told ArmeniaNow, they were asked to deliver people to polling stations. The route – N70 – belongs to MP Samvel Alexanyan of the Republican Party.

Another ArmeniaNow reporter voted at 9:30 a.m. in Shengavit and saw that – just 90 minutes after the poll had opened (and on a Sunday morning) – the ballot box was already at least a quarter full.