Bright Armenia leader alleges Azerbaijani-backed smear effort ahead of vote

Armenian opposition leader Edmon Marukyan on Friday accused Azerbaijani-linked sources of orchestrating a media campaign against his Bright Armenia Party ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections scheduled for June 7.

In a video statement, Marukyan said what he described as a “propaganda campaign” against his party began several days ago and involved political commentators, media figures and civil society representatives.

He specifically criticized Daniel Ioannisyan, an election observer accredited by Armenia’s Central Election Commission, alleging that observers are required to remain impartial and should not engage in political advocacy against any party.

“The propaganda campaign against us started through Azerbaijani sources,” Marukyan said. “An observer must be neutral, independent and should not campaign for or against any political force.”

Marukyan said the matter had been formally raised with the Central Election Commission and is currently under review.

The Bright Armenia leader also accused political analyst Areg Kochinyan of using offensive language against his party after recently visiting Azerbaijan.

“Baku has launched a large-scale offensive in the media sphere, using soft power against the Bright Armenia Party,” Marukyan said. “Their concern is that, regardless of the outcome, only Bright Armenia should not enter the parliament.”

Marukyan further claimed his party had received unequal media treatment during the campaign period, saying other political parties were granted two televised appearances before and after the campaign, while Bright Armenia was allocated only one.

He said the backlash intensified after the broadcast of an interview he gave to Public TV host Petros Ghazaryan.