Presidential election: Bulgarians vote at 70 polling stations in Germany
Voting abroad in Bulgaria’s presidential election has been under way since Saturday evening. With 70 polling stations, Germany has the third-largest network after Britain and Turkey.
Symbolic image · Photo: Alicia Fagerving / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped and resized)
Election day has begun for Bulgarians living in Germany: 70 polling stations have been set up in the country for the Oct. 25 presidential election, Bulgarian news agency BTA reported, citing the Foreign Ministry in Sofia. That gives Germany the third-largest network outside Bulgaria – behind Britain with 82 and Turkey with 78 polling stations, and ahead of Spain (67) and the United States (44). In total, voting abroad takes place at 613 polling stations in 60 countries.
Voting abroad began on Saturday at 9 p.m. Bulgarian time in Auckland, New Zealand; the last polling stations close on Monday at 5 a.m. Bulgarian time. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time, and anyone still in line may vote until 9 p.m. Machine voting is available at 242 polling stations abroad. Voters who did not register in advance can still cast a ballot but must sign a declaration on an official form, according to the Consulate General in Düsseldorf.
Around 6.59 million people are eligible to vote, and 27 pairs of candidates are running. If none wins the required majority in the first round, a runoff will be held on Nov. 1. Results may be counted only after polls close at 8 p.m.