site.btaInstitute Warns of Massive "Election Tourism"

Institute Warns of Massive "Election Tourism"

Sofia, June 19 (BTA) - A total of 80,200 people obtained
current-residence registration between February and April 2015,
almost double the number in February-April 2014, Antoaneta
Tsoneva of the Institute for Public Environment Development
(IPED) told a BTA-hosted news conference on Friday.

These people can vote in another place - the place of their
current residence, as opposed to their permanent residence -
during the upcoming local elections, provided that they ask the
authorities to include them on the respective voters' list,
Tsoneva explained.

In April 2015 alone, 34,924 people obtained current-residence
registration, which is the largest number for that month since
2011.

The largest increase in current-residence registrations was
reported in the northwestern Vidin Region, where they rose
seven-fold in February-April 2015 compared with February-April
2014. Second on the list is Vratsa Region, where such
registrations increased 4.52 times, followed by the regions of
Sofia, 4.28 times, Kyustendil, 3.57 times, Pernik, 3.51 times,
Montana, 3.22 times, Haskovo, 3.15 times, and Blagoevgrad, 2.92
times.

Among individual municipalities, the southwestern Treklyano
Municipality recorded a 42-fold increase (from 7 registrations
to 296 registrations), and the northwestern Gramada Municipality
 recorded a 41-fold increase (from 16 to 650).

Paradoxically, the village of Toshevtsi in Gramada Municipality
has 125 permanent residents, but between February and April 2015
 it "received" as many as 251 "current" residents. After
subsequent checks, 60 of these registrations were cancelled due
to violations of relevant rules.

IPED commented that such "election tourists" typically come from
 large, central population centres and move to the fringes of
the respective region or municipality. The votes of these people
 become more useful in controlled voting as they enable
vote-buyers and brokers to control entire pools of voters,
Tsoneva said.

She called on the competent institutions to make decisive
efforts, because if the registrations of "election tourists" are
 cancelled, this will have a structural impact on controlled
voting and vote-buying.

It has been proposed to amend the Civil Registration Act to the
effect that persons who violate the law will have their
residence registration cancelled, Tsoneva said. She believes
that this time it is possible to keep "election tourists" from
influencing the election of mayors.

The effort to move voters from one place to another is partly
due to a legislative change which has increased the minimum size
 of population centres where mayors will be elected, from 100 to
 350 residents, Tsoneva said.