Sat, Nov 21 2009

Bulgarians abroad face long queues to vote

Sun, Jul 05 2009 16:26 CET byGabriel Hershman 967 Views 1 Comment
Bulgarians abroad face long queues to vote

Voting may be straightforward in Sofia but in London and Athens Bulgarians have found it harder to express their democratic will
Photo: Reuters

As has been noted elsewhere  in The Sofia Echo, for Bulgarian expatriates abroad, voting can be a frustrating experience.

London has apparently seen long queues forming in front of its two polling stations on election day. Some Bulgarians have even expressed doubts as to whether they would be able to cast their vote before the polling stations closed. Reportedly, some people have already started to leave after waiting in line for hours on end.

In Athens, the situation is even worse. Only one polling station is opened in the Greek capital even though the Bulgarian community had reportedly collected enough signatures for at least one more station to open.

A Bulgarian Foreign Ministry spokesperson abroad denied any irregularities with Bulgarians voting abroad, and claims that election day abroad is going as planned.

But, according to the spokesperson of Bulgaria's central electoral commission, Alexander Alexandrov, any setbacks in London could have been avoided if Bulgarians living there had forewarned authorities of the need to open more polling stations. Alexandrov said there was nothing the Commission could do on election day.

The situation in Turkey is very different. Almost half of all 274 foreign polling stations are there. 

 

Comments

Anonymous Jane184 Tue, Jul 07 2009 18:19 CET
Inappropriate comment?

Bulgarians should appreciate the opportunity given to them to vote at a polling station in a foreign country. For USA voters abroad, we must sent in an absentee ballot several weeks ahead of time. This even includes American soldiers stationed abroad.

Very nice of the foreign offices to have polling places open. And shouldn't anyone in line at the time of poll closing be allowed to vote?

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