Plovdiv election officials discover 200 damaged ballots

During the distribution of election materials for the presidential elections scheduled for October 25, 200 damaged ballots were discovered in the Istochen district of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The issue was identified on October 20 when administrative staff noticed a compromised seal on one of the ballot boxes.

A subsequent inspection conducted in the presence of members of the District Election Commission (RIK 16) confirmed that two stacks of 100 ballots each were damaged and unfit for use. Because ballots must be detached sequentially during voting, the entire stacks are considered unusable.

The District Election Commission has ordered that these 200 ballots be removed from the electoral process. They will be placed in a separate, sealed package and stored in a secure room under the protection of the Ministry of Interior. The Central Election Commission and the Plovdiv regional governor are being notified of the incident.

Officials stated that the discovery will not result in a shortage of materials. Plovdiv-city has a reserve of 4,300 ballots, which is sufficient to replace the damaged stacks.