site.btaNo Major Incidents Reported to Police on Voting Day

No major incidents were reported on polling day in Bulgaria's local elections, the Interior Ministry said in a press release on Sunday night. By 9:30 p.m., the Sofia Directorate of the Interior Ministry and regional directorates had received 1,946 alerts about alleged violations of election law and breaches of citizens' political rights during the voting.

Pretrial proceedings were instituted in 165 cases on Sunday, including fast-track proceedings in 46 cases and standard ones in 119 cases. The total number includes 144 cases of suspected breaches of citizens' political rights and 21 other reported violations related to the election process, the press release said.

Also on polling day, the Interior Ministry's identity document offices across Bulgaria issued 822 certificates enabling individuals to exercise their right to vote. A total of 1,695 such certificates have been issued since October 24.

Police crews escorted election officials as they took the voting ballots and related documents to the municipal election commissions.

The situation at Bulgaria's border crossings is normal, with intense traffic reported at some checkpoints. The Border Police is ready to relax the border control procedure if necessary to avoid long lines of waiting vehicles.