Bulgaria's Socialist Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev did his best to set an example of proper voting habits by switching off his mobile phone in front reporters and citizens.

"Vote buying is a disgraceful practice for any democratic country and we should all stand up against it," Sergey Stanishev said as he cast a ballot at the Music High School in Sofia.

He expressed the hope that beefed up police presence on the election day will put an end to this vicious practice.

Bulgaria has banned the use of mobile phones and cameras in polling booths in Sunday's local election in a bid to prevent the widespread practice of vote-buying.

Mobile phones and cameras are believed to be a key element in the scams, producing the evidence that the vote has been cast for a designated candidate by taking a picture of the ballot paper.

A sign reminds voters that the use of mobile phones and cameras is banned upon entering the polling both.

It was not immediately clear how the ban will be monitored since the central electoral body, which issued it in the wake of a flood of reports of alleged vote-buying, left it up to its regional electoral units to decide.

Bulgaria's parliament passed last week an amendment that criminalizes the selling of votes and provides for up to one year in prison. Buyers of votes face up to three years in jail.

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