By Hasmik Mkrtchyan and Margarita Antidze
YEREVAN (Reuters) - Prime Minister Serzh Sarksyan wonArmenia's presidential election in the first round, an exitpoll showed on Tuesday, but the opposition said voting wasmarred by beatings and ballot-stuffing.
Most observers say Sarksyan would pursue policies followedby President Robert Kocharyan during his decade in office. Poorand land-locked, Armenia relies heavily on a long-standingalliance with Moscow.
Sarksyan won 57 percent of the vote, way ahead of hisnearest opposition challenger, former president LevonTer-Petrosyan, according to an exit poll by Britain's Populuspollster for Armenian public television.
Populus said Ter-Petrosyan scored 17.04 percent.
But Ter-Petrosyan's campaign office said staff had beenbeaten and even kidnapped at polling stations and vowed to holda protest rally in Yerevan on Wednesday, opening the spectre ofmass protests which have followed previous elections.
Polling stations closed at 8 p.m. (4 a.m. British time) inthe mountainous, impoverished country of 3.2 million people andthe first official results were expected on Wednesday.
Armenia is squeezed between Turkey and Azerbaijan in aregion that is emerging as an important transit route for oilexports from the Caspian Sea to European and world markets.
Sarksyan, after voting in a Yerevan school, said thepriority was for Armenia to conduct a free and fair election.
"It's not important whether the election will be held inone or two rounds. The most important point is that ourelection be trustworthy," Sarksyan said. The top two candidateswill contest a run-off if no one tops 50 percent in the firstround vote.
The rest of the field is led by former speaker ofparliament Artur Baghdasaryan and Ter-Petrosyan, a formerpresident who was forced to resign in 1998 and is now seeking acomeback.
"I'm confident that I'll win in the first round ... I'vevoted for freedom," Ter-Petrosyan said after casting hisballot.
"There are some 'dirty things' already going on," he said,but declined to give details on specific cases.
TEST OF STABILITY
Previous elections in Armenia, high in the Caucasusmountains, have been followed by mass opposition protestsalleging ballot fraud.
Baghdasaryan also said there had been violations. "There isabsolute chaos at one polling station in Yerevan ... which isimpeding the voting process," said a spokeswoman for hiscampaign.
"At another polling station people were distributing votinglists that were already filled in favour of one candidate."
Kocharyan, 53, is barred by the constitution from serving athird consecutive term. He is expected to remain influentialbut has refused to disclose what role he wants until hisreplacement is inaugurated.
"I think no one has any doubt about whom I would be votingfor. I voted for stability and prosperity in Armenia,"Kocharyan said, after casting a ballot at the same pollingstation as his prime minister.
"I voted for Sarksyan because I don't want Armenia to beplunged into chaos again," said Khachatur Babayan, 63, adoctor. Many Armenians associate Ter-Petrosyan's time in officewith economic meltdown and power blackouts.
But others said they wanted change.
"I think that Levon Ter-Petrosyan will be able to helppeople, to make our country really prosperous," said schoolteacher Hasmik Hovannesyan, 54, as she cast her ballot.
Armenia is still officially at war with Azerbaijan over thebreakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Yerevan has frostyrelations with Turkey, in part because of a bitter dispute overthe killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War One.
(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Robert Woodward)
