Armenia's acting PM claims victory as party takes early lead in parliamentary election

Leader of "Armenia" bloc and the country's former President Robert Kocharyan casts his vote at a polling station during the snap parliamentary election in Yerevan, Armenia June 20, 2021. Vahram Baghdasaryan/Photolure via REUTERS

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Armenia's acting prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, claimed victory in a parliamentary election on Sunday after his Civil Contract party took an early lead as votes were counted.

With 30% of results declared, Pashinyan's party had 58.52% of the vote, compared with 18.56% for former President Robert Kocharyan's Armenia Alliance, the RIA news agency reported, citing the Central Election Commission (CEC).