Nearly 6,000 people identified themselves as ethnic Bulgarians in Australia in the continent's most recent census in 2021. 3,300 of them indicated that they were born in Bulgaria. Our compatriots are most numerous in the Australian metropolis of Melbourne.

"According to the latest official data, there are about 870 Bulgarians here," Mancho Manchev, deputy chairman of the electoral section in the city, in which exactly 80 Bulgarians exercised their right to vote three months ago, told Radio Bulgaria. An hour before the end of the election day today, an improvement in the result can already be observed and the number of people who voted was 88. The election process took place without any problems, calmly and without violations in the traditional premises for elections in Melbourne, next to the Bulgarian church in the city. "The election commission is very experienced. We work excellently with the embassy, ​​with the ambassador and the consul of Bulgaria in Australia and everything is extremely smooth and worked out," said Manev. He added that people enter the polling station smiling to exercise their civil rights.

"Attitudes are very diverse - from great positivity to sarcasm. Some of the Bulgarians say - we will see each other in three months. Others hope that this vote and this election will end the vicious circle we have fallen into. People who don't come to vote usually don't come because it's too difficult as an organization and the distance is long, so they have to dedicate at least half a day to vote."

"The interesting thing we're seeing here is that there are new faces coming in to vote. Faces that we have not seen in the previous and in the elections before. So, maybe in Bulgaria (the seventh parliamentary elections in a row - note ed.) they cause a slight mobilization. This is also reflected in the number of votes, so there can be a positive side hat outweighs the negative side of this fact."

And our compatriots in the sunny country are voting this time for:

“For hope. They are voting for a new and working government. Their relatives who have remained in Bulgaria are voting for this so that they finally have a stable government and a better future," says Mancho Manev and admits that he is skeptical about the realization of the four-year full mandate of the 51st Bulgarian Parliament, which leads to more reflection and emotions.

"I would say that this is quite dangerous and unpleasant, because it creates a time of chaos and indolence, in which the state does not actually have any development - neither in legislation, nor in digitalization, nor in infrastructure, nor in administration. "None of these things can happen and improve when there is no working real government, but there is a caretaker one that just beats around the bush until the new ones come", Mancho Manev believes.

Our compatriot Izabela Shopova, who has been living in Australia since 2008 and today is the secretary of the polling station in Brisbane, does not share the same opinion. Without claiming to be a political analyst, but a good mathematician, she told Radio Bulgaria:

"Based on our past experience, I don't think the next election will be in four years. But I also don't think it's tragic if the next election is in six months. To me, this is the democratic process. This is how a democratic society goes through periods of crisis. In my opinion, there is a deep not only political crisis, but also a deep crisis in our society, and this political problem, which we fail to solve with repeated elections, is one of its symptoms."

The election process in Brisbane today proceeded normally without problems and with moderate interest among voters. 42 of the Bulgarians in Brisbane cast their vote with 47 applications submitted in advance.

"Everyone is hopeful that this act of voting will make the change that is needed. But at the same time, we all agree with each other that we may have to come to the polls again. I think there are always people who genuinely believe in the democratic process and the need to take these actions, even when hope is waning and when we don't see change happening anytime soon. But at the same time, there are also many people who gradually become discouraged. It is very clear here that interest in the parliamentary elections has significantly decreased compared to three years ago."