Prosecutors Fail to Elect SJC Members in First Round, Mediapool.bg
Bulgarian prosecutors failed to elect any of their four representatives to the Supreme Judicial Council during the first round of voting, according to Mediapool.bg.
Record Turnout Fails to Secure Outright Winners
To secure a seat on the first ballot, a candidate needed to capture more than half of the valid votes, setting the required threshold at 676 votes. None of the 25 registered candidates crossed that line. Plamen Petkov, a prosecutor from the Sofia District Prosecution Office, led the field with 479 votes. Ivaylo Iliev, a prosecutor from Kyustendil, followed in second place with 400 votes. Krasimira Filipova, a former deputy to former Chief Prosecutor Ivan Geshev, gathered 365 votes, while Ivaylo Angelov from the Sofia Appellate Prosecution Office secured 327 votes, Segabg.com noted.
Paper Ballots and Live Broadcasts Ensure Election Transparency
The election process utilized paper ballots containing the full names and positions of all 25 candidates in alphabetical order. The Supreme Judicial Council and the Bulgarian News Agency broadcasted the opening of the ballot boxes, the sorting of papers, and the counting of votes live via the internet.
Contrasting Backgrounds Among Frontrunners
The leading vote-getters bring varied professional histories to the judicial governance race. Ivaylo Iliev represents a newly formed prosecutorial association of magistrates challenging the existing hierarchy within the state prosecution service. Ivaylo Angelov previously headed the appellate specialized prosecution office before its closure.
Low Threshold for Sunday Runoff
Voting resumes Sunday morning and runs until 18:00 hours. The runoff requires a reduced threshold where valid participation must reach at least 33 percent of eligible voters, and the four candidates with the highest vote totals will win the remaining seats.
The current council’s mandate expired four years prior, leaving magistrates waiting for a functional replacement to manage administrative and professional standards across the judicial system.