Истината

The key to the mayor's office is in the hands of the non-voters
Of the 36,000 voters in the municipality of Velingrad, only 11,800 voted in the partial mayoral elections on September 18. Voter turnout of 32.78% hit a passivity record. For comparison: in the previous partial elections for mayor in February and in the parliamentary elections in June in the municipality of Velingrad, over 22,000 voters voted. Unlike the recent votes, this time the vote in Velingrad was more active, albeit with few, than in the region. From nearly 22 thousand voters in Velingrad to the polls went 7547 or 34.5%. Surprisingly low was also the activity in the settlements of the municipality, where out of 14,217 voters voted 4255 or 30%. The non-voting record holds Sarnica with only 13.5% voting. Roma neighborhoods were not active, in Anezica they gave their vote only 17%.
In the results of the first round of the election, the independent candidate Stoyan Dulev led with 5,414 votes. The DPS-backed MP Fidel Beev candidate expected a far more serious result and a win without a runoff. But the predicted massive support from the DPS did not take place. The official position of the movement his voters to vote "conscientiously" in previous elections always gave maximum votes for Fidel Beev, but now did not achieve the same for Stoyan Dulev. Surprised by the behavior of voters in the area expressed also the district leader of DPS Ahmed Hadzhiyski.
With nearly 900 votes less second place is BSP candidate Ivan Lebanov, supported also by the parties from Coalition for Bulgaria, NMSS, BZNS-NS, SDS, BSD, etc. In the first round, the Olympic medalist received 4538 votes, mostly from Veligradians - 4015 votes plus only 500 votes from the villages. Already on election night in the headquarters of Ivan Lebanov they realized that an extremely difficult runoff was waiting for them.
Decent participation in the elections was recorded by the independent candidate Nikola Matrov, whose side in the campaign stood UDF, DSB, IMRO. Mr. Matrov received 1766 votes, which practically provided the opportunity to have a second round. The candidate this time from NPZ "N. Petkov” Angel Toporchev went down well below the 216 votes received by him in February. Now only 84 voters voted for the former deputy mayor. He himself was not allowed to vote because he had missed a deadline to submit a request for entry on the electoral rolls.
The first round passed relatively calmly. Two official complaints were filed by the BSP headquarters in the OIC regarding the behavior of DPS MP Fidel Beev. The first complaint was caused by the fact that Mr. Beev was agitating voters in Draginovo to vote for Stoyan Dulev, which was banned on election day. In addition, the DPS MP has exceeded his rights, requiring committees in the sections to see the electoral lists. The second appeal was again for improper agitation by Fidel Beev, this time in the Roma neighborhood of Anezitsa. Interest in the electoral process in the municipality of Velingrad was shown by other MPs - Kostadin Kobakov from the BSP, Dr. Ivan Kolchakov from the ODF, but without interfering in a similarly illegal way and campaigning for their supported candidates.
On September 18, the elections took place under a never-before-seen tight organization. The municipal administration tried its best and this worked. Despite the severe road conditions following the floods, all election materials were delivered on time. For the transportation of members of sectional commissions in the area were provided high-pass vehicles. Remarks were heard from members of the SIC in Ablanitsa and Cvetino, for whom no transport was provided to go down to Velingrad and thus they failed to vote in their polling stations. The organization was also excellent in accepting the ballots. For the first time at 10 p.m., all the committees had submitted their minutes and there was summary information about the election results.
Special thanks to Vrid Mayor Atanas Vodev and the Municipal Election Commission were expressed by most of the media covering the vote. For the first time in the municipality was organized a press center in which the chairman of the OIC Ivanka Stancheva and the spokesman of the OIC Reni Trenova gave up-to-date official information. With the help of colleagues from the press center in this election, journalists received all the data they asked for.
The results of the first round spell a fateful second round. The key to the mayor's office is in the hands of non-voting voters. In the tough election week, the parties take an extremely responsible exam. The dangers of ethnic voting and the long-term consequences for the city and the municipality are clear to everyone. Another danger should not be underestimated - another buying of the vote, which collapses people's confidence in power. The choice should not be subordinated to party and coalition accounts - voters have strongly shown that this repels and demotivated them. Let's not forget that the mayoral elections are a majority, that between Stoyan Dulev and Ivan Lebanov we choose the worthy person. For Mr. Dulev, the stakes are high, as on October 7, the criminal case continues, in which he is accused of material damage to the municipality. For Mr. Lebanov, the stakes are also high because he has staked his name and authority on a proven athlete and man. The stakes are high for all of us as voters, too, because by voting or not voting we choose the direction in which the new mayor will lead our city and municipality.
Tempo

First round results
Candidate Mayor Velingrad Total %
Stoyan Dulev 1825 5414 45.87
Ivan Lebanov 4015 4538 38.45
Nikola Matrov 1633 1766 14.96
Angel Toporchev 74 84 0.71