Voters abroad must fill in a declaration in front of the polling station commission, as the Electoral Code says, and this will slow down voting, foreign ministry permanent secretary Radi Naydenov said in a TV interview. He also chairs the ministry's "Elections" working group.
With the declaration, voters confirm they will not vote anywhere else. Until now, people filled it in in a nearby room. Naydenov said the text now requires them to do it in front of the whole commission. He said the two steps can hardly run at the same time, because other people could hear voters' personal details. He thinks the country needs a solution that follows the law and does not stop people from voting.
The declarations are meant to prevent double voting, but Naydenov said it cannot happen even without them. Data on approved applications goes to GRAO, the civil registry, and the people are removed from other lists.
There will be polling stations in 613 places in 60 countries. In all, 39,194 people from 73 countries applied in advance. Of nearly 39,000 with an application, 38,227 are on the voter rolls. So far, between 10% and 20% of voters abroad have registered in advance. About 90% sign up on the spot, where their names and personal details are written down by hand.
There are 280 voting machines. Each of 242 polling stations will get one, and 38 will get two. The foreign ministry received them on 17 and 18 October, a weekend, after they were certified again, and sent them out at once. Teams are shipping them to the stations by courier and road transport.
The state aviation operator is also involved. With its help, 80 staff are travelling. They are also diplomatic couriers and deliver machines, election papers and ballots.
No machines will be sent to Russia. An analysis by Bulgaria's diplomatic mission there found that a machine at the polling station would take more time and make voting harder.
The number of polling stations abroad is limited, Naydenov explained, because the law sets other conditions for opening a commission, besides people's wish to vote. Elections there need many staff and a good deal of money. The last vote abroad cost about €2.3m for a set number of stations, and this one will cost more.
For future elections, Naydenov proposes compulsory advance registration by application.