Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev expressed discontent with the rumours that voters in small resort town of Sandanski, next to the Greek border in southwestern Bulgaria, were offered between 70 and 80 leva in exchange for their vote in the upcoming ad hoc elections for municipal councilors, scheduled for June 7 2008.

Stanishev talked to the media on June 1, before taking part in a round of the European rafting cup, held near Simitli in the waters of nearby Strouma river.

Stanishev called upon the people in Sandanski to take part in the elections and exercise their right to vote. “If they don't, then they would have little grounds to be unsatisfied with the local authorities," he was quoted as saying by Bulgarian National Television.

He also said that he had given strict instructions to Interior Minister Mihail Mikov ensure that the elections went without a hitch. Police presence is expected to be intense on the election day.

The October 28 election results in Sandanski were declared void by the Administrative Court in Blagoevgrad in December last year, due to numerous violations of election procedures, mainly because of the shortage of election ballots.

The elections gave the Roma minority party Evroroma 10 municipal councilors, and the Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria party seven.

The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation and Bulgarian People's Agriculture Union each had six councilors. Neither of the ruling parties managed to win seats in the council. Ultra-nationalist Ataka party was also left out of the council.