site.btaGERB Leader Borissov Says His Party Backs Election Code Changes Introducing Voting with Paper-ballot Scanners

GERB supports the proposed amendments to the Election Code introducing voting with paper-ballot scanners, party leader Boyko Borissov said in a post on Facebook on Wednesday. According to him, the aim is to eliminate the human factor in order to avoid errors in vote counting.

Borissov added that if a caretaker government, which would be responsible for implementing such a decision of the National Assembly and procuring the scanning devices, fails to do so, GERB believes it would be best to retain the current Election Code, which provides for parallel voting with machines and paper ballots.

He said he was personally against making changes to the Election Code at the last minute, immediately before elections.

Earlier in the day, a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional and Legal Affairs, which was expected to consider at first reading amendments to the Election Code submitted by Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria introducing 100% machine voting, was cancelled. The agenda had also included the second reading of a consolidated bill amending the Election Code.

Proposals to change the way elections are conducted were among the main topics in the declarations of parliamentary groups during the first sitting of the 51st National Assembly for the year.