site.btaElectronic Governance Minister and CC-DB Coalition Face Accusations of Enabling Election Interference

After Central Election Commission (CEC) members and the caretaker Minister of Electronic Governance, George Sharkov, were given a parliamentary hearing on Wednesday, lawmakers commented on what they heard from them about the preparations for the early parliamentary elections on April 19.

Georgi Krastev (GERB-UDF) said the mantra of Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) and the caretaker government about “fair elections” collapsed, following the remarks by the Electronic Governance Minister on what constitutes a fair vote, calling it a “subjective concept.” Krastev added that the caretaker government is effectively for the service of CC-DB. Criticizing MP Bozhidar Bozhanov (CC-DB) for meeting the minister, Krastev described such contacts as “strange and self-interested.”

Bozhanov countered that the National Assembly spent two hours simply being told by the institutions that the schedule and the law were being followed. He criticized “petty intrigues and attempts at minor politicking” during that time, noting that as Electronic Government Committee chair or deputy chair, he routinely meets any incoming minister.

Angel Slavchev (Vazrazhdane) said that while his party has repeatedly called for 100% machine voting, CC-DB and Minister Sharkov had effectively handed the ball to the Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning and GERB to sabotage it. “My advice, to preserve your dignity, is to resign, because right now you’re making a laughing stock of yourselves,” Slavchev told the minister. He emphasized: “The machines are just printers, they simply print a ballot.”

Stanislav Anastasov (MRF – New Beginning) insisted that his party is not against machine voting per se, but against machines “proven to be compromised.” He demanded explanations for delays in certifying the machines and alleged interference in certain structures, warning that attempts to “steal the elections” would fail.

Krasimira Katincharova (Velichie) expressed hope that the CEC would select appropriate paper for the machines to reduce the number of invalid ballots.