Bulgarians Not Free to be Artistic on Integral Ballot

While previous years Bulgaria allowed all sorts of symbols and drawings on the integral ballot provided there are no personal data and only one box is marked, now it is only the X sign that will count.

Bulgaria holds for the first time presidential and local elections on October 23.

Text markings are strictly forbidden, as well as any other signs that violate the anonymity of the voter or are different from the X sign.

The Central Election Commission will not recognize a ballot as legitimate if the markings flow into the boxes of the other presidential candidate.

During previous elections with the integral ballot, Bulgarians had the chance to fulfill their artistic impulses on the ballot and the Commission still acknowledged the vote as valid provided that there were no references to the voter's identity.

Back then the Commission tolerated even vulgar drawings, swastikas, and other insulting cartoons.

Bulgarians vote on October 23 for president and vice-president, mayors and municipal councilors with integral ballots that were first used in the country at the parliamentary elections in 2005.

The voter enters the polling booth after receiving a sealed integral ballot from a member of the commission, tick the check box next to the candidate preferred, wraps the ballot and thus concealing the vote hands it over to a member of the commission, who puts a second seal. Next the voter casts the ballot into the polling box and signs in the electoral list.

More than 6 million people are eligible to vote in about 11,400 polling sections across the country. The vote of Bulgarians living abroad is more restricted as at least 100 voters were required for one booth to be opened.

A total of 6.5 million Bulgarians are eligible to vote on Sunday for nearly 30 000 candidates for local mayors and municipal councilors, while 6.9 (including the vote abroad) have the right to elect the country's new president.