Parliamentary elections are approaching, and with them the issues surrounding their holding are becoming more and more pressing. For now, the option announced by President Rumen Radev is to vote on March 28, 2021. This means that the time for changes in the Electoral Code is not long at all, because the deputies will go on vacation until January 10.
An even bigger problem is that it is still unclear what changes should be made to ensure everyone has the right to vote. A special working group is dealing with this issue, and it is functioning under the leadership of Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev.
Sociologist and former member of the Central Election Commission Tsvetozar Tomov suggested that polling stations be set up in schoolyards, and that section commissions be housed in a van that outsiders do not have access to to ensure that they are protected from infection. According to him, this is the option for the quarantined and people with mild symptoms of COVID-19 to exercise their right to vote.
Another way is to accept voting by mail. For this purpose, a change in the Electoral Code is needed to allow remote voting. This has been announced many times by Democratic Bulgaria, which has prepared a bill on the subject. They called on one of the parties represented in parliament to submit it so that it could be voted on.
The third way to vote for the quarantined and sick is through mobile ballot boxes. However, many problems arise here because it is not clear who will carry these ballot boxes and how these people will be protected from infection. In addition, the number of people under mandatory isolation and those with coronavirus infection is expected to be high, which means that a serious resource will be needed.
The question remains how to vote with the same chemical. It remains to be seen whether it will be disinfected.
That is why the problem of voting in two days is becoming very relevant again. A similar idea already existed, but GERB abandoned it. Voting in two days, according to some experts, will allow green corridors to be made for the elderly, similar to those for shopping.
