Bulgaria’s October municipal elections to cost 51M leva – Finance Minister
Bulgaria’s 2015 mayoral and municipal elections, the first round of which will be held on October 25, will cost close to 51 million leva (about 26 million euro), Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov told the weekly Cabinet meeting on August 26.
Goranov said that the funds requested had added up to 69 million leva, against the 39 million leva reported for the municipal and presidential elections in 2011, but reductions had been achieved to bring the figure to 51 million leva. Of the sum, 23 million leva is for salaries.
The government is considering encouraging voter turnout through an information campaign highlighting the extensive opportunities that the law provides to Bulgarians abroad to exercise their right to vote.
The government also is calling on political parties to fill to the maximum their quotas in the membership of election commissions outside the country.
Regional Development Minister Liliyana Pavlova told the Cabinet that there was a trend for mayors to refuse orders for elections to be held in all settlements with more than 100 inhabitants, as the law requires.
Pavlova said that cases of refusal would be referred to the Prosecutor-General and to the Supreme Administrative Prosecution Office.
Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev will be responsible for the overall organisation of the local elections and the national referendum on October 25, the Cabinet media office said.
His duties include co-ordination with the Central Election Commission on the terms and conditions for the making, supply and storage of election documents and materials, as well as storage of technical devices for voting machines.
The Minister of Finance also will have to propose a draft tariff of charges that the parties, coalitions and initiative committees will have to pay for election broadcasts on public broadcasters Bulgarian National Television and Bulgarian National Radio and their regional centres.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Roumyana Buchvarova will organise the “implementation of activities within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Interior”, the government statement said, presumably referring to policing, and the Minister of Regional Development and Public Works will co-ordinate the preparation and publication of voter lists.
The organisation, preparation and holding of the national referendum outside the country will be the responsibility of the Foreign Minister, Daniel Mitov.
