site.btaUPDATED Information Services Gives Data on Election Results' Recalculation to Prosecution, Constitutional Court Says That Impedes Court's Work

The activities of the Constitutional Court must not be impacted by the actions or inactions of other state bodies, Pavlina Panova, President of the Constitutional Court, said in an address on Monday regarding the recalculation of parliamentary election results. Her statement followed the news that earlier on Monday, election services operator Information Services submitted all paperwork related to the recalculation of the October 27, 2024 parliamentary elections to the prosecuting magistracy. In Panova's words, the data were handed to the prosecuting magistracy without the Court's permission, hindering the Court’s efforts to conclude the case challenging the election results.

On February 26, the Constitutional Court tasked the Central Election Commission (CEC) with recalculating the results of the elections. The ruling was prompted by applications of several parties contesting the election outcome. The next day, CEC decided that it would instruct Information Services with the recalculation.

Panova noted that after the Court gave its instructions, CEC posed additional questions on three occasions, and the Court responded promptly each time. “Nevertheless, on Friday, March 10, after 6 p.m., the Constitutional Court was informed that CEC continues to neglect its assigned task because Information Services handed over the materials related to the constitutional case, along with technical carriers and devices, to the Sofia City Prosecution Office without the Court’s permission,” Panova said. Panova added that only the Constitutional Court has the authority to determine the legality of parliamentary elections, and all state institutions must fully cooperate instead of impeding its work.

Earlier on Monday, CEC Deputy Chair Rositsa Mateva said that CEC and Information Services are processing data from 2,204 tally sheets sent by the Constitutional Court. Information Services was expected to provide the database by Monday. Once reviewed by CEC, efforts will be made to submit everything required by the Constitutional Court, Mateva said.

Political reactions

Vazrazhdane said in a press release that the party's position remains unchanged, namely that the Constitutional Court "has once again violated the Constitution, and Information Services should be deleted as a structure." 

The Morality, Unity, Honour (MECh) party said in a position to the media that the institutional crisis related to the transfer of responsibility between the Constitutional Court, Information Services, and CEC is unprecedented. The party demanded new elections immediately and the cancellation of those of October 27, 2024. According to MECh, the country is in total collapse and only new elections is the solution to the political crisis created by GERB, the two fractions of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, There Is Such a People, and the Bulgarian Socialist Party.

The Continue the Change party called on President Rumen Radev to convene the Consultative Council for National Security immediately to take urgent measures to protect democracy and the rule of law. The party commented in a statement that the Sofia City Prosecution Office, which it said is controlled by MP Delyan Peevski, placed itself above the Constitutional Court to cover up "the theft and the buying of the latest elections." Continue the Change argued that the prosecutors' demand to receive election data only serves to delay the announcement of the recalculated results.

The Democratic Bulgaria party urged the Constitutional Court to exercise its powers in accordance with the Bulgarian Constitution. "No institution, not even the Prosecution Service, can prevent this from happening," the party said in a statement. It called on the Constitutional Court to publish all expert examinations in the case. "This is the only way to protect the citizens' right to free and fair elections," it said. The constitutional judges "should not allow Peevski's prosecution to undermine the last remnants of trust in the Bulgarian institutions," Democratic Bulgaria said.

The GERB party, too, insisted that the Constitutional Court should make public the expert examinations in the case. Writing on its Facebook page, GERB demanded utmost clarity about the conclusions of the experts and the outcome of their work. "The tally sheets showing the numeric data from every section election commission for which the results have been challenged should be published without exception," the party said.