The Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) has annulled and returned for a new examination to another panel of the Administrative Court Sofia - City (ACSG) the decision in administrative case No. 10768 of 2023, concerning the election of mayor of Sofia Municipality, due to violations of the rules of court procedure.
The appealed decision of the first instance court confirmed Decision No. 1094 - MI of 6.11.2023 of the Municipal Election Commission - Sofia, by which Vasil Terziev was declared elected mayor of Sofia Municipality in the second round with 175,044 valid votes received, representing 48.20% of the valid votes. Vanya Grigorova, ranked second, received 170,258 votes, representing 46.89% of the actual votes.
The case before the Supreme Administrative Court was initiated upon a cassation appeal by Vanya Grigorova, in her capacity as a candidate for mayor of the Sofia Municipality, nominated by the MC “BSP for Bulgaria“ and by Ivan Takov, in his capacity as chairman and representing the MC “BSP for Bulgaria“.
From the reasons of the first instance court, it is evident that the Supreme Administrative Court has categorically established several violations - lack of flash drives provided by the manufacturer for the respective SIC, the electronic signature used to sign the files in the flash drives is not qualified and does not comply with the regulations, as it was filed by the respective SIC, but not for specific individuals. The Supreme Court of Appeals has accepted the crossing outs in the protocols of the Electoral Commission as a clear factual error, which is in contradiction with the norms of the Election Code.
The Supreme Magistrates of the Cassation Instance accept that the Supreme Court of Appeals has not discussed in substance these violations and their significance and impact in terms of guaranteeing the credibility and reliability of machine voting, including the printed machine receipts/ballots.
The Supreme Court of Appeals has also not accepted all the conclusions of the experts who prepared the appointed forensic expert opinions, and at the same time has referred to them. The expert opinions concerning the lack and certification of the flash drives have not been accepted as evidence. Therefore, the Supreme Magistrates accept that violations of the rules of judicial procedure have been committed.
The decision in administrative case No. 7848 of 2024 is final, the press center of the Supreme Administrative Court announced.