The Ministry of Interior has received over 500 reports of vote buying and other violations of electoral legislation. 11 people were detained in the cases, and no new vote trading schemes have been identified, announced the department's chief secretary, Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov.
According to data collected by the police, one vote cost between 40 and 60 euros. The Ministry of Interior reports that election day passed without mass vote trading, despite the significant number of reports.
According to the ministry's assessment, the detention of the mayors of Sungurlare and Belitsa had an impact on the electoral process. The information provided does not mention the names of the two mayors, nor specific data on the way in which the detentions affected the results.
Demerdzhiev: Mayors tried to show influence
Minister of Interior Ivan Demerdzhiev stated that the most active schemes were related to the actions of certain mayors.
„The most prominent schemes this time were on the part of some certain mayors, who exercised exceptional activity in their effort to prove that they are still strong and can somehow influence the election results“, said Ivan Demerdzhiev.According to him, there was significant dynamics in Kardzhali between the two rounds. In the first round, the instructions were not to vote, and before the runoff, an attempt was made to change the voter turnout.
„The first instructions in Kardzhali were not to vote. Now they obviously tried to activate the vote in a certain way and it is quite obvious that it did not work“, the Minister of the Interior pointed out.Demerdzhiev stated that the actions of the Ministry of the Interior have shown that elections can be held without mass vote trading and while respecting electoral rights.
Sources: nova.bg