Balgarianovinite.com Bulgarian investigative journalist Christo Grozev told the European Parliament’s Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield (EUDS) on Monday he is proud that Bulgaria sought EU support for the early parliamentary elections on April 19. Sofia’s move consisted in asking for the EU Rapid Response System to be activated ahead of the elections. The system can help voters in a member state make informed and neutral decisions free of foreign manipulation.
Grozev spoke via a videoconferencing link during an EUDS discussion on attempts at foreign interference in the Bulgarian elections.
According to him, the measures taken by Bulgaria in the run-up to the elections were unprecedented in Central and Eastern Europe and had a deterrent effect. This is evident from intercepted internal communications, he noted, referring to a national working group which was set up to counter foreign information manipulation and interference.
In Grozev’s view, there were justified expectations ahead of the elections of a “Romanian scenario”, in which a candidate receives a surge of support through a social network. Grozev noted that this did not happen in Bulgaria, although there were attempts at influence through online platforms. He pointed out that Facebook profiles known for spreading pro-Russian propaganda were renamed before the elections in order to maintain their influence and disseminate opinions related to the candidates. Grozev clarified that despite reports, the Central Election Commission did not take a position on these cases.
According to him, three parties showed coordinated electoral behaviour: Progressive Bulgaria, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, and There Is Such a People.
Grozev said that the main goal of attempts at foreign interference in Bulgaria’s elections was to create perceptions rather than to spread disinformation. This year, Russia chose a new approach – to present EU actions as censorship and interference, he noted. Grozev added that there is a perception in Bulgaria of impunity in speech, although not every statement falls within the scope of European legislation.
Bulgaria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Velizar Shalamanov said at the EUDS discussion that no serious incidents had been identified related to attempts at foreign interference in the parliamentary elections. “Our goal was deterrence,” he said. According to him, limited cyberattacks were observed only in the final hours before the end of election day.
Shalamanov recommended that in future there should be closer coordination between the Communications Regulation Commission, the Council for Electronic Media and the Central Election Commission. Investigative Journalist Christo Grozev Praises Bulgaria for Seeking EU Assistance for April 19 Elections 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-05-04 18:09:00 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law