Bulgaria's Central Election Commission (CIK) met international observers from more than 14 countries a few days before the presidential election, the commission said. They discussed the security of the voting machines and steps to keep the vote fair.

CIK members spoke today with representatives of the European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE) and met Electio Lab yesterday. The guests come from the US, Belgium, Norway, Italy, Germany, Spain, Slovakia, Portugal, Hungary, Denmark, Ireland, Poland, Argentina, South Africa and other countries.

The commission explained how it is preparing for the vote and how it will make sure the election is lawful and fair. The machines took the longest to discuss: the certification of the software, the trusted process for building the source code and other steps.

Under changes to the Electoral Code, machine voting will be used in polling stations with more than 300 voters. The CIK says it has taken all the steps needed to make sure the machines work effectively, safely and reliably. It says clear and open procedures guarantee a transparent and fair vote, and that extra steps should help the election pass calmly and successfully.

Both sides agreed that sharing experience and information is useful. They also discussed future cooperation, including taking part in round tables.

A week ago, Information Services (Informatsionno Obsluzhvane) showed the public the system that processes the voting data on computers.