site.btaParliamentary Committee Rejects Proposal to Ban CEC Members from Sitting on Party Governing Bodies During Their Term

The parliamentary legal affairs committee on Monday rejected at second reading a proposal to ban members of the Central Election Commission (CEC) during their term from sitting on the governing bodies of political parties or participating in political campaigns. Provisions that would have barred CEC members from holding such positions for two years after the end of their term, a requirement to submit declarations of political impartiality upon taking office, as well as a proposal to change the required majority for CEC decisions, were also rejected by the committee. The proposals were submitted by the Vazrazhdane party.

The committee members are discussing at second reading amendments to the Election Code.

Nadejda Iordanova and Stoyu Stoev from Continue the Change–Democratic Bulgaria and Alexander Rashev from There Is Such a People (TISP) exchanged remarks regarding the introduction of optical scanning devices. CC-DB argued that this is premature and there is not enough time to implement the new technology, train the administration, and familiarize the public. TISP, on the other hand, argued that it is possible, that there is time for the new machines to be delivered, and that if problems arise during voting, the CEC will be able to decide how to continue the process.

According to GERB-UDF, the purpose of the scanning device is to verify that voting is conducted correctly and to count the votes. Branimir Balachev commented that paper has prevailed over machines. He noted that there will be no Maduro-style machines, which print out protocols that are considered final, because that option has already been rejected. He added that if there is not enough time and the public is not convinced, the elections will proceed under the old rules.

Maya Dimitrova from BSP-United Left confirmed that the plan is for the changes regarding scanning devices to come into effect in 2027.

Tsveta Rangelova from Vazrazhdane emphasized that the focus must be on the fairness of the vote and the prevention of manipulation, raising questions about the specifications of the new machines and the voting process.

Members of MECh said that their parliamentary group will not support amendments to the Election Code because of the public protests against the same majority proposing them. “Do not make changes to the Election Code without public support, which I believe was lost after the government resigned,” said Hristo Rastashki from MECh.