188 People Have Been Arrested for Vote Buying So Far, Ministry of Interior Says

A total of 188 people have so far been detained in connection with election-related offences, the Ministry of Interior announced at a briefing in Plovdiv oin April 6.

Caretaker Minister of Interior Emil Dechev highlighted the results of specialised police operations targeting vote-buying across different parts of the country.

“Today we are holding a national meeting with regional directors from all regional directorates in Southern Bulgaria, as well as the entire senior leadership. Once again, we have found that the number of reports now, compared to October 2024, when the last parliamentary elections were held, has increased by several hundred per cent. This is a clear signal of increased public trust in the new leadership of the Interior Ministry, and people see value in reporting crimes against citizens’ political rights related to elections. There is also an increase in the number of pre-trial proceedings initiated for election offences. The number of detained individuals has risen by several hundred per cent, as have warning protocols related to election offences.”

Further details on the statistics were provided by Acting Chief Secretary of the Interior Ministry Georgi Kandev.

“Thirteen days before the elections, 1,094 reports of election violations had been received, compared to 179 reports ahead of the 2024 elections – an increase of 511%. Criminal proceedings now stand at 330, compared to 58 thirteen days before the 2024 elections – a rise of 470%. The number of detained individuals is currently 188, compared to 35 in 2024 – an increase of 473%. Warning protocols number 2,785, compared to 662 in 2024 – 320% more,” Mr Kandev said.