Bulgaria Electoral System
Parliament
- Unicameral parliament
- Chamber name: National Assembly (Narodno Sabranie)
- Members: 240
- Term: 4 years
- Constituencies: since 1991: 31 multi-member constituencies (seats according to population). 1990: 28.
- Voting system: 1990: Mixed-member system. 400 seats were distributed. 200 seats were elected by double ballot system in single-member districts, 200 by PR (D’Hondt) in 28 districts. There was only one national tier for the PR seats with a 4% threshold on the district level.
Since 1991: 31 members are elected using the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system; 209 members are elected under the proportional representation (PR) system using the closed party list. These seats are distributed according to the d'Hondt method. Only parties and coalitions that obtain at least 4 per cent of the nationwide popular vote are entitled to parliamentary representation. - Voter requirements: 18 years of age; Bulgarian citizenship.
- Voting is not compulsory.
President
The president of Bulgaria is elected through a direct popular vote for a five year term. The electoral system is based on the majoritarian two-round system (also called second ballot or runoff voting). The voter casts a single vote for their favoured candidate. If no candidate recieves a majority of the votes, that is 50 percent plus one vote, a second election round is organized in which only the two top runners stand against one another.
Sources
OSCE (The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe): Statement of preliminary findings and conclusions on the Limited Election Observation Mission to observe the 5 July 2009 parliamentary elections in Bulgaria.
Birch, Sarah, Frances Millard, Marina Popescu and Kieran Williams, 2002. Embodying democracy: electoral system design in post-communist Europe. Palgrave Machmillan: New York.
Inter-Parliamentary Union, PARLINE database on national parliaments
Constituency-Level Elections Archive (CLEA): country descriptions.