Armenia's parliamentary election, held against the backdrop of tensions with Russia, began with several arrests on Sunday.
In the city of Gyumri, police searched the offices of the Strong Armenia opposition party of pro-Russian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, according to media reports.
Officers detained more than ten people on suspicion of vote-buying, police said. Three members of a local electoral commission were also taken into custody during the night.
Polling stations across the country opened at 8 am (0400 GMT). Turnover was brisk, according to a dpa reporter.
Nearly 15% of voters had cast their ballots by 11 am, the electoral commission said. Some 2.5 million voters are eligible to cast their ballots in the South Caucasus republic.
Among those who voted in the morning was Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who is seeking a third term in office.
"Democracy always works in favour of regional and international cooperation and is an instrument for peace in the region," Pashinyan said.
Pashinyan is working on a peace treaty with Azerbaijan, three years after Armenia lost a military conflict with its neighbour over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The opposition has accused the prime minister of treason in this regard.
The government, in turn, has accused parts of the opposition of acting on behalf of the Kremlin.
Tensions between Russia and Armenia have grown sharply in recent months over Yerevan's pursuit of closer ties with the European Union. Moscow has imposed import bans on Armenian products and threatened to terminate a favourable gas supply contract.
An Armenian government official accused Moscow of attempted vote-buying, alleging that Armenians living in Russia had been flown home specifically to vote for pro-Russian parties in exchange for payment.
Farah Karimi, head of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) election observation mission, spoke of a "worrying polarization of the election campaign."
She told dpa it had been marked by accusations and insults.
Geopolitical tensions
In 2023, Yerevan suffered a painful defeat in the dispute over the contested region of Nagorno-Karabakh. More than 100,000 ethnic Armenians were forced to flee following Azerbaijan's violent conquest of the territory, with the opposition accusing Pashinyan of betraying the national interest.
The prime minister has received backing from the US government under President Donald Trump. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made a special stopover in Yerevan to sign a bilateral cooperation agreement.
