Ahead of vote: Disputed members on polling commissions; authorities lack the means
In Belitsa and Yakoruda, members of previously problematic commissions are set to count votes again. Election authorities say they cannot vet the parties’ nominees.
Symbolic image · Photo: OSCE Parliamentary Assembly from Copenhagen, Denmark / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped and resized)
A week before the presidential election, the makeup of polling station commissions (SIK) is again drawing criticism. As Bulgarian National Television (BNT) reports, two members of a commission in Belitsa will again count votes – a commission in which, after the October 2024 parliamentary election, a member was seen on video filling in blank ballots. That person is not involved this time. According to the Regional Election Commission in Blagoevgrad, problematic polling stations are concentrated in Belitsa and Yakoruda.
The chair of the regional commission in Blagoevgrad, Yoana Lozanova-Palankova, is considering a “blacklist” but can remove members only after they resign. The commission in Montana said it could not check nominees’ criminal records and could not reject the parties’ proposals. Central Election Commission spokeswoman Stoyanka Balova said it applies the Electoral Code and has no powers of its own to vet the individuals.
SIK members receive 156 euros for their work, secretaries 170 and chairs 185 euros. BNT had already reported further cases on Oct. 16: in Lom, the Central Election Commission dismissed the deputy head of the municipal election commission after a final conviction for embezzlement. In more than 75% of polling stations, voting on Oct. 25 will be by machine.