Official campaigning for the 25 May parliamentary election began on 21 April, RFE/RL\'s Yerevan bureau reported. The Central Election Commission has registered 1,084 candidates representing 17 parties and four blocs to contest the 75 mandates to be distributed under the proportional system. A further 406 candidates are competing for the remaining 56 single-mandate seats. Some 60 prospective candidates were denied registration, including Armen Sargsian, who is currently in detention under suspicion of involvement in the slaying of Public Television and Radio head Tigran Naghdalian. Arshak Sadoyan, who represents the opposition National Democratic bloc in the outgoing parliament, was denied registration on the pretext that his property declaration incorrectly stated the dimensions of his Yerevan apartment. Hayk Babukhanian of the Union of Constitutional Rights was also denied registration due to alleged omissions in his property declaration. (RFE/RL)