Bulgarian prosecutors vote again today after judicial council ballot fails
Despite turnout of almost 87%, Bulgaria's prosecutors failed in the first round to elect any of their four members of the new Supreme Judicial Council. A second round follows on Sunday.
Graphic: TERRA WORLD NEWS (own graphic based on the sources listed)
The election of prosecutors to Bulgaria's new Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) is going into overtime. None of the candidates received more than half of the valid votes, the election commission said overnight into Sunday. Voting will therefore continue with a new round on Oct. 25, the day of the presidential election, public broadcaster BNT reported.
On Saturday, 1,363 of 1,568 eligible voters cast their ballots, or about 86.9%, according to BNT; 18 ballots were invalid. By 1 p.m., turnout had stood at 61.77%, according to the BTA news agency. Four seats are to be filled, and 25 candidates were running, according to BTA (BNT put the number at 24).
Voting was by paper ballot at 29 polling stations across the country, matching the locations of the regional courts. The opening of the ballot boxes and the count were recorded on video and streamed live on the council's website. The body is being reconstituted through several quotas: besides prosecutors, judges, investigators and parliament also elect their representatives.