Bulgarian TV Host Registers Committee for Referendum on Political System

Bulgarian talkshow host Slavi Trifonov has filed the documents of an initiative committee that will lead the campaign for his referendum on the politial system.

Registration started earlier in September as Bulgaria braces for a 2-in-1 vote, with presidential elections and the referendum due on November 06.

The three questions in the referendum proposal are related to the introduction of compulsory voting, the introduction of a majority electoral system and cutting the state subsidy paid to political parties and coalitions to BGN 1 for each valid vote won by them in elections.

The poll initially consisted of six questions, but half of them were blocked by the Constitutional Court after being referred to it by President Rosen Plevneliev.

The three controversial issues were whether the number of MPs should be cut in half to 120, whether to allow remote online voting (already approved in a referendum last year) and whether the top officials at the Interior Ministry's regional directorates should be elected by the people, instead of being appointed.

Some parties, such as left-wing ABV have already urged Bulgarians to vote "yes".