SOFIA, 4 July 2009 - The International Election Observation Mission - a joint undertaking of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to observe the parliamentary elections in Bulgaria - will present its preliminary post-election statement at a news conference on Monday, 6 July, in Sofia.

The preliminary statement will be presented by Tadeusz Iwinski, Head of the PACE delegation, and Ambassador Colin Munro, Head of the OSCE/ODIHR limited election observation mission.

The International Election Observation Mission comprises a total of over 30 observers, including 21 experts and long-term observers deployed by the OSCE/ODIHR since early June, as well as 12 parliamentarians and staff from the PACE.

Journalists are invited to attend the news conference at 13:00 on Monday, 6 July at the Radisson Hotel, Alexander Ball Room, in Sofia.

For further information contact:

Jens-Hagen Eschenbächer, OSCE/ODIHR, +48 603 683 122, jens.eschenbaecher@odihr.pl

Vladimir Dronov, PACE, +33 663 493792, vladimir.dronov@coe.int