Key Bulgarian Presidential Runner Cries Foul over 'Registration Refusal'

Bulgaria's first EU Commissioner and Presidential hopeful, Meglena Kuneva, has failed to register for the October 23 presidential elections due to filing documents ahead of schedule. Photo by BGNES

Meglena Kuneva, Bulgaria's ex-EU Commissioner and major presidential runner, as well as her initiative committee, have protested what they have perceived as a refusal on behalf of the Central Electoral Committee to register her as a candidate.

On Monday, Kuneva claimed that the Central Electoral Committee had refused to receive the documents gathered by the initiative committee and register her.

As the Committee explained, the registration for the forthcoming presidential elections starts on August 05, pointing out she had confused the date with that on which receiving documents for participation in the local elections starts.

Despite the explanation, Kuneva gave an official press conference on the matter Tuesday.

"I am very disappointed, I did not believe things were so easily manipulated from the very beginning of the preparations for the elections," Kuneva declared.

The deadline for submitting documents with CEC is August 08 for the local elections and August 23 for the presidential elections.

Bulgarian voters will head to the ballot boxes on October 23, when they will vote in both local and presidential elections.

Meglena Kuneva, Bulgaria's first and former EU Commissioner and chief negotiator on EU accession, is an independent presidential candidate backed by an initiative committee. She has vowed that she will not seek support from any political parties and will rely on the "voice of the citizens".

Kuneva was the only presidential candidate who tried to register on Monday.