Office of the Historian

874.00/6–745: Telegram

The United States Representative in Bulgaria (Barnes) to the Secretary of State

Sofia, June 7, 1945—4 p.m.
[Received June 8—6:10 p.m.]

303. The press has published text of the new Bulgarian electoral decree which has been approved by the new Council of Ministers and will appear shortly in the Official Gazette. In appraising the extent to which the Communists may be able to dominate the elections despite the apparently non-partisan character of the new electoral procedure, the following provisions of the decree are of particular interest:

1.
Bulgarian citizens enjoying political rights, including soldiers and members of militia hitherto disfranchised, are declared eligible as voters at the age of 19 and as candidates at 23. This provision gives political weight to a category of voters whose immature views are thought to be more influenced by extremist ideas than by milder currents of opinion
2.
The question of a single list for the parties constituting the FF is still primarily a matter for decision by the parties themselves. However, the new electoral law provides that if a party participates in a joint FF list in any one of the 24 electoral districts into which the country is divided that party cannot put up separate candidates in the same district. The Obbov Agrarians and the Neikov Socialists would thus be able by participating in common FF lists to prevent any other Agrarian or Socialist candidates from being presented.
3.
The whole procedure of casting and counting votes is under the supervision of local and district electoral bureaus selected by lot by the local Administrative authorities 10 days before the election day. As it is a tradition of Bulgarian electoral procedure that the party which controls the electoral bureaus wins the elections the opportunities which this device offers to the Communist Min of Interior are obvious.
4.
As the electoral law further provides that all candidates must prove their “freedom from taint” the Communists have a legal excuse for forestalling the candidature of any person whom they may consider objectionable for any reason.
5.
The date of the election must be announced 2 months in advance by decision of the Council of Ministers.

Rptd to Moscow as 156 and to AmPolAd as 159.

Barnes