site.btaUPDATED Opposition MP Petkov: Tallied Votes for GERB-UDF, MRF - New Beginning Outnumber Votes Cast by Largest Margin

Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) MP Kiril Petkov highlighted Thursday that the recalculation of the October 27 election results showed that the tallied votes for two parties, GERB-UDF and Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) - New Beginning, outnumber votes cast by the largest amount. Commenting on the Constitutional Court's Thursday rulling that 16 MPs in the 51st National Assembly were unlawfully elected, he crowned MRF - New Beginning as the "champions" in this regard as the number of votes for them is inflated by more than 1,100.

"What we have been saying all along after the elections is now visible in figures," Petkov said.

Asked whether the Constitutional Court's decision will affect the ruling majority and whether CC-DB is ready to enter into talks with the Government, Petkov replied: "From our point of view at this point nothing has changed. The cordon sanitaire [around MRF - New Beginning Floor Leader Delyan Peevski] was not respected. So while MRF - New Beginning and Peevski are walking around as the ruling opposition, it is absurd to have any talks with them."

CC-DB Co-Floor Leader Nadejda Iordanova called not to use the decision of the Constitutional Court as an excuse for another political confrontation, but to find a way for a common political consensus and amendment of the Election Code.

She said it is evident from the court's decision that there is a problem in the vote counting. "The problem is significant, it is legislative, it is also a matter of human errors - where malicious, where due to fatigue," Iordanova noted. That is why the National Assembly needs to reach a broad political consensus on how to fix this problem, human error should be eliminated, including by introducing machines, she stressed. Iordanova added that the kind of machines and the ways to change the technology should be the subject of broad political agreement. "We are ready to work and participate in this process," the CC-DB Co-Floor Leader said.