A steady and higher turnout of 59%, compared to last October, has been recorded at the polling station in Christchurch, New Zealand. Along with the one in Auckland, these were the first polling stations to start Election Day as early as 19:00 GMT last night. By the end of the day, 19:30 local time, 24 Bulgarians have voted, out of 42 previously registered on the electoral rolls, Svetoslava Alexieva tells us. By comparison, the final number of voters in the previous elections six months ago was 19. 

"The prevailing spirit is that of positivity and great hope that things will work out. People actually come to us with a big smile. Everybody's expectations are mostly related to the formation of a stable regular government after today," Alexieva told Radio Bulgaria.

It is the first time Ms. Alexieva has participated in the organisation of elections in New Zealand, where she has lived for six years. She admits that there were no problems during the preparations for today.  "The instructions we received from the Central Election Commission were very detailed and everything was made very easy for us. We have committee members who already have experience from previous elections. There is also a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, assigned to our section from Bulgaria and everything is going without any difficulties." 

Svetoslava too is optimistic about a future of stable governance for her country after today. She believes that she and our compatriots in New Zealand have made an informed and objective choice because, in her words, we live in a global world where physical distances do not matter so much anymore. "The difference for us is that we can look at things outside the situation, and somehow with a more objective eye," the Bulgarian says. And in the spirit of hope, she wishes that this will be the last early parliamentary elections. At least for this year.

We need to vote and we must create conditions for this to happen, Denitsa Stoeva told our reporter Vesela Krasteva. Proof of her words is the opening of the polling station in Christchurch this year - a cause Ms Stoeva has been working for years. Six months ago, at the elections for the 48th National Assembly of Bulgaria, Denitsa was again a member of the local polling staff.

Today she is in Melbourne, Australia, where she continues her 16-year adventure in the Land of the Long White Cloud. The location is different, but the political commitment as a Bulgarian citizen is the same. Ms. Stoeva exercised her right to vote today in the hope that a regular Bulgarian government will be formed to restore the balance of power in her homeland.

"I voted with a view to the future, with hope for something better and with the deep personal conviction that I must participate. Nothing will ever change if we don't do our job - to vote, to enable others to cast their ballots. From my observations over the years here, I believe that in well organised countries, citizens participate actively, vote en masse, and that is something that holds politicians accountable and makes things happen. Political parties do not cater for the non-voters, but for those who vote, and this is the case all over the world. Here in Australia I have witnessed two elections and in both the expectation was that there would be no clear winner. The results have proved them wrong. And my secret hope today is that there will be a surprise and that people will finally be fed up and make the effort to vote. I believe that a result can be achieved that will create the preconditions for the formation of a regular government. No matter how difficult it will be" - says Denitsa.

Interview by: Vesela Krasteva 

Photos: personal archive, Pixabay

English version: Elizabeth Radkova