Bulgarian referendum, 2016

A three-question referendum was held in Bulgaria on 6 November 2016 alongside presidential elections.^[1] Voters were asked whether they supported limiting public funding of political parties to one lev per year per valid vote received at the previous elections, the introduction of compulsory voting in elections and referendums, and changing the electoral system for the National Assembly to the two-round system.^[2] In order to be binding, the number of voters participating in the referendum must be equal to or higher than the number who voted in the 2014 parliamentary elections.^[3]

All three proposals were supported by a majority of those voting, but turnout was slightly lower than the 2014 parliamentary elections, meaning the quorum was not met. However, as over 20% of registered voters voted in favour, the proposals will still have to be debated in the National Assembly.^[4]

Results

Question	For		Against		None of the above		Invalid/ blank	Total votes	Registered voters	Turnout
	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%
Two-round system for parliamentary elections	2,509,864	73.80	560,024	16.47	330,928	9.73	87,668	3,488,484	6,865,086	50.81
Compulsory voting	2,158,929	63.48	905,691	26.63	336,180	9.89	87,668	3,488,468		50.81
Political funding	2,516,791	74.02	523,759	15.40	359,778	10.58	87,668	6,865,086		50.81
Source: CIK

References

1. Bulgaria’s 2016 presidential elections: Voters to have ‘I don’t support anyone’ option Sofia Glove, 9 October 2016
2. Bulgarian TV Host Registers Committee for Referendum on Political System Novinite, 23 September 2016
3. Bulgaria's Referendum on Voting System Surprisingly May Pass Threshold Novinite, 7 November 2016
4. After a Day of Uncertainty, Bulgaria Voting System Referendum Falls Through Novinite, 8 November 2016