site.btaPresident Iotova Says Lack of Clear Reason to Limit Voting Sections outside EU Drove Her to Veto Election Code Revisions

President Iliana Iotova vetoed amendments to the Election Code that limit the number of voting sections outside the European Union to 20, as no one was able to give her “a satisfactory explanation as to why the number must be set at exactly 20,” she said in a wide-ranging interview on bTV on Friday morning. “I heard many contradictory and unconvincing explanations,” she said.

Parliament revised the Election Code on February 5 and the President vetoed the revisions on February 11. 

According to her, there are no convincing reasons for this measure, and it calls into question the constitutional right of Bulgarian citizens to exercise their vote.

The head of State said that her decision was not made hastily, but was taken after discussions with the authors of the amendments.

Iotova stressed that Bulgaria has communities all over the world and that the state should encourage, not hinder, their participation in the election process. In her view, the restrictions would create practical obstacles for voters who live far from diplomatic missions or do not have the financial means to travel

She further stressed that the right to vote is one of the most hard-won civil rights and should not be restricted through administrative decisions. She warned that such measures could have the opposite effect and revive practices such as election tourism.

Iotova said that the veto outlines specific provisions which according to her contradict the Constitution, and expressed her expectation that the National Assembly will reconsider the disputed texts.