site.bta30 Detained Over Election Violations as Bulgaria Prepares for Early Polls

Thirty people have been detained under the Ministry of Interior Act in connection with election violations, Deputy Interior Minister Ivan Anchev said at a briefing of the Elections Coordination Council on Monday.

Anchev reported that 22 people were detained in Sofia City, three each in the regions of Burgas and Haskovo, and one each in Varna and Sofia Region.

A total of 151 alerts about breaches of election legislation and violations of citizens’ political rights were received by 8:30am on Monday. The highest numbers of reports were in Sofia City (35), Varna Region (19), and Veliko Tarnovo Region (17). Of all alerts received, 126 were related to vote-buying in favour of political parties and coalitions, five to unlawful campaigning, three to employer-influenced voting, one to property destruction, and 16 to other violations connected to the electoral process, Anchev said.

Fifty-three pretrial proceedings have been opened, the Deputy Minister added. He further stated that 26 are disciplinary proceedings being investigated under the general procedure, while 27 are fast-track proceedings.

At the same briefing, Vanya Nusheva, electoral matters adviser to the caretaker Prime Minister, said the Interior Ministry operates an election task force, an official hotline, and a dedicated email address for reports of offences against citizens’ political rights. 

Nusheva talked of a significant increase in both the number of alerts received and pretrial proceedings organized in the context of the elections. “The high number of reports indicates increased public trust and expectations that this time the Interior Ministry will work efficiently, impartially, and will not take a merely formal approach to data on irregularities and offences against citizens’ electoral rights,” the Prime Minister’s adviser stressed.