Bulgaria Guarantees Secret Ballot for Blind Voters with New Election Code Amendments

For the first time Bulgaria’s Election Code includes concrete guarantees that blind and visually‑impaired citizens can vote secretly and independently. Deputy Ivan Yanev of the Progressive Bulgaria party announced that the legal text now requires voting machines to provide voice instructions and to allow screen‑font enlargement. The law also mandates tactile templates for paper ballots, a measure already used in some polling stations. Yanev credited the rapid work of the Legal Committee, the Central Electoral Commission and his party colleagues, saying the change resolves a decade‑long problem where blind voters previously had to rely on a sighted assistant, compromising ballot secrecy and opening possibilities for abuse. The amendments are expected to benefit not only voters with recognized visual disabilities but also elderly voters and others with reading difficulties.