MPs open the procedure for electing a chairperson of the Central Election Commission

MPs opened the procedure for electing a chairperson of Bulgaria’s Central Election Commission (CEC).

After no parliamentary party nominated a replacement for the resigned CEC chairperson, Stefka Stoeva, within the 5-day period to so, on September 23, the Committee on Legal Affairs voted on new procedural rules, which in practice means that everything starts all over again. This time, MPs have 7 days to nominate candidates for the post. Non-governmental organizations will have a 6-day period to make their proposals.

Stefka Stoeva resigned as chairperson of the Central Election Commission at the end of August.

She decided to step down from the post disagreeing with the latest changes to the Electoral Code, which provided for the election commission be fully responsible for the acquisition, operation and storage of voting machines.

The Chairperson of the Legal Affairs Committee Anna Alexandrova commented that today she will propose that the procedural rules be approved in the plenary hall as well, so that all deadlines start running.

At this stage, there are still no nominations of potential candidates. The chronogram shows that with the proposals, their hearing in committee and the voting of the candidacy in the plenary hall, there could be a new CEC chairperson on October 8 at the earliest.