site.btaPetitions for Annulment of Elections Will Require Expert Assessments – Constitutional Judge

It is likely that experts will be needed in connection with the requests for the elections to be canceled, says Constitutional Court Judge Yanaki Stoilov

It is likely that expert examinations will have to be carried out in connection with the requests for annulment of the elections, because if the primary data are not available, the right conclusions can’t be drawn, constitutional judge Yanaki Stoilov said on Bulgarian National Television on Sunday. The Constitutional Court has two months to come up with a ruling.

Earlier in the week, the Constitutional Court launched proceedings at the request of 67 MPs from the 50th National Assembly contesting the legality of the elections of MPs in 52 voting sections on October 27. The rapporteur in the case is Yanaki Stoilov.

Stoilov said that all the data should be examined in order to establish the de facto situation. In such proceedings, the work of the Constitutional Court is similar to other courts - it becomes a court of fact, whereas in other cases it is mainly a court of law to review legislation.

This will probably require expert examinations, because if the primary data is not available, there is no way to draw the right conclusions, Stoilov said.

“Looking at the avalanche of annulment petitions, I have to say that the more they multiply, the more it slows down the process, because the goal should be a clear result of what the elections reflect as the will of the Bulgarian citizens,” Stoilov said.

The activities of the institutions are not suspended because of the ongoing proceedings, the constitutional judge explained.

Stoilov said that trust in the electoral process should be enhanced.

We cannot establish the share of bought and corporate vote, we can only establish the accuracy of the announced results, Stoilov said.