Bulgarian Parliament adopts election code overhaul and new judicial council selection rules

The National Assembly passed amendments to the Election Code that restore full machine voting for future elections. The changes eliminate the "Foreign" voting district, limit paper ballots to precincts with fewer than 300 voters and to special locations such as hospitals and care homes, and introduce a "speaking module" in Bulgarian to assist voters with visual impairments. The parliament now has roughly 9,600 functional voting machines and plans to procure about 2,000 more to ensure coverage nationwide.

In a separate vote, deputies approved procedural rules for selecting members of the Supreme Judicial Council. The rules, supported by parties including Progressive Bulgaria, GERB‑SDS, DPS, Democratic Bulgaria and Continue the Change, outline how nominations are submitted, examined for professional and moral qualifications, publicly disclosed and finally voted on. The opposition party "Vazrazhdane" abstained. The new framework aims to increase transparency and broaden participation in the Council’s composition.