Whether Bulgarians live well or not, elections are still coming… Election day started at 7 AM sharp today, and it is the fifth time in two years that Bulgarians are going to cast their vote for the formation of the country’s legislative body.  

More than six and a half million Bulgarians are entitled to exercise their will as citizens for a better future for the country, according to their convictions and beliefs. This number includes all Bulgarian citizens over the age of 18, no matter which country they may be are located in, with the exception of persons who have been deprived of their legal capacity and persons serving a prison sentence. Persons with permanent residence status in the Republic of Bulgaria who are not Bulgarian citizens do not have the right to vote at elections for members of parliament.

The Central Election Commission specifies that the only document entitling the holder to vote in the country is a valid identity card or a green passport (for persons born before 31 December, 1931).

There are 4,566 candidates for members of parliament, representing 15 parties and 7 coalitions, vying for seats in the National Assembly. As is customary, voting in Bulgaria takes place in a total of 31 multi-member constituencies formed depending on the regions in the country, with each sending a set number of representatives to the future parliament, the minimum being 4.

There are changes this year. After heated debate at the National Assembly, the paper ballot was brought back as a voting option, and now every voter who is on the list of a polling place with more than 300 voters will be able to choose whether to vote by machine or by paper ballot.

There are 11,818 polling stations in the country, in 9,366 of them there are voting machines.

Voting can also take place in mobile ballot boxes provided an application for such a ballot box has been submitted by 18 March. Voting with an assistant or attendant is only allowed if the voter is unable to exercise their right to vote by themselves for reasons of health. Illiteracy does not constitute cause for voting with an assistant or attendant, the Central Election Commission says.

For the first time there will be video surveillance at the polling places, and after election day is over, the counting of the ballots will be monitored and recorded.

By law, voting ends at 8 PM.

Today’s 5^th snap election for parliament is going to cost 87.7 million Leva (almost EUR 45 million). Whether it will be the last election for the year or whether there will be more election days added to the string of elections during the past couple of years – 4 April, 11 July, 14 November, 2021 and 2 October 2022 – is yet to be seen.

Editing by Vessela Krasteva

Translated from the Bulgarian by Milena Daynova