Only 10 parties register for elections
Days before the deadline for submitting documents for participation in the European and national elections, only 10 parties and 8 coalitions have registered with the Central Election Commission (CEC), announced the commission's spokesperson, Rositsa Mateva. She noted that the deadline expires on April 24th at 5pm and urged political formations not to wait until the last moment.
The deadline for registering candidate lists for both types of elections is May 7th. Mateva also announced that more than 11,800 polling stations will be opened nationwide. The preliminary voter lists provided by the "Civil Registration and Administrative Services" directorate show that the total number of voters is:
- 6.1 million for the European Parliament elections
- 6.6 million for the National Assembly elections
The difference in numbers is because voters who want to vote for MEPs must have a three-month residency.
Turkstream committee launches amidst scandals
The temporary committee investigating the missing roadmap for the Bulgarian segment of the Turkish Stream convened but only managed to adopt internal rules for its operation. Former Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, in GERB's cabinet when the project was built, was not heard, although it was on the agenda.
Leaks have revealed that the tenders, funding and building of Turkstream, built by Bulgartransgaz several years ago, all favored Russia's Gazprom. The project was conducted in record time by GERB and bypassed competition laws whilst giving Russian gas a green light through Bulgaria.
Members of WCC-DB also insisted on hearing political commentator and energy expert Iliyan Vassilev, which gained support from the friendly hacker group The Elves, who discovered the missing roadmap in correspondence a month ago. However, this proposal was dismissed without a vote.
The session was marked by recriminations and an awareness that the committee would likely accomplish nothing before the start of the election campaign.
Govt mulls move to online schooling in wake of whooping cough epidemic
School authorities, in agreement with health inspections, could organize online learning for all children in the wake of the rising number of cases of whooping cough, announced Chief State Health Inspector Assoc. Prof. Angel Kunchev who was answering a question about the possibility of imposing quarantines on classes or entire schools.
Bulgaria has seen a sharp increase in the number of cases in recent months, registering 280 cases since January compared to just 4 cases last year.
Kunchev predicts that thousands of children will be affected by whooping cough. Known for its mortality rate of 1-2%, young children are at greatest risk, he added. "The real concern is for children up to one year old, especially for infants under two months old. Efforts should be focused on these babies," he said.
Only 10 parties register for elections
Days before the deadline for submitting documents for participation in the European and national elections, only 10 parties and 8 coalitions have registered with the Central Election Commission (CEC), announced the commission's spokesperson, Rositsa Mateva. She noted that the deadline expires on April 24th at 5pm and urged political formations not to wait until the last moment.
