THIRD SECTION
CASE OF MEMISHEV AND OTHERS v. BULGARIA
(Applications nos. 49554/21 and 64 others –
see appended list)
JUDGMENT
STRASBOURG
9 October 2025
This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.
In the case of Memishev and Others v. Bulgaria,
The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:
Úna Ní Raifeartaigh, President
Mateja Đurović,
Vasilka Sancin, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having deliberated in private on 18 September 2025,
Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:
PROCEDURE
1. The case originated in applications against Bulgaria lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table.
2. The applicants were represented by Ms S. Ivanova, a lawyer practising in Sofia.
3. The Bulgarian Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the applications.
THE FACTS
4. The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.
5. The applicants complained under Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention of their ineligibility, as convicted prisoners, to vote in legislative elections. They also argued under Article 14 of the Convention that this was also in breach of the prohibition of discrimination.
THE LAW
JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS6. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.
ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 3 ProtOCOL No. 17. The applicants complained principally of their ineligibility as convicted prisoners to vote in legislative elections. They relied, expressly or in substance, on Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention.
8. The Court refers to the principles established in its case‑law regarding ineligibility to vote in elections (see, among other authorities, Hirst v. the United Kingdom (no. 2) [GC], no. 74025/01, §§ 56-71, ECHR 2005‑IX; Scoppola v. Italy (no. 3) [GC], no. 126/05, §§ 81-87, 22 May 2012; and Anchugov and Gladkov v. Russia, nos. 11157/04 and 15162/05, §§ 93‑100, 4 July 2013). The essence of these principles, reiterated in all of these key cases, is that when disenfranchisement affects a group of people generally, automatically and indiscriminately, solely on the basis that they are serving a prison sentence, irrespective of the length of the sentence and irrespective of the nature or gravity of their offences and their individual circumstances, it is not compatible with Article 3 of Protocol No. 1.
9. In the leading case of Kulinski and Sabev v. Bulgaria, no. 63849/09, 21 July 2016, the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.
10. Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of these complaints.
11. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention.
OTHER ALLEGED VIOLATIONS UNDER WELL-ESTABLISHED CASE-LAW12. The applicants also complained under Article 14 of the Convention. Having regard to the conclusion above under Article 3 of Protocol No. 1, the Court considers that, while this part of the application is admissible, no separate issue arises under Article 14 of the Convention in the circumstances of the present case (compare Hirst (no. 2) [GC], cited above, §§ 87 and 89, and Anchugov and Gladkov, cited above, § 116).
APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION13. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case‑law (see, in particular, Tingarov and Others v. Bulgaria, no. 42286/21, 10 October 2023), the Court considers that the finding of a violation constitutes sufficient just satisfaction in the present cases.
FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,
Decides to join the applications;Declares the applications admissible;Holds that these applications disclose a breach of Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention concerning the ineligibility of the applicants as convicted prisoners to vote in legislative elections;Holds that no separate issue arises under Article 14 of the Convention;Holds that the finding of a violation constitutes in itself sufficient just satisfaction.Done in English, and notified in writing on 9 October 2025, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.
Viktoriya Maradudina Úna Ní Raifeartaigh
Acting Deputy Registrar President
APPENDIX
List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of Protocol No. 1 of the Convention
(ineligibility of convicted prisoners to vote in legislative elections)
No.
Application no.
Date of introduction
Applicant’s name
Year of birth
Type of restriction
Election details
49554/21
04/10/2021
Memish Aliev MEMISHEV
1982
Impossibility for the applicants, convicted prisoners, to vote in parliamentary elections
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49575/21
04/10/2021
Georgi Valev VALEV
1958
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49578/21
04/10/2021
Ramadan Asanov SHERIFOV
1981
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
49586/21
04/10/2021
Ivan Tsvetanov IVANOV
1983
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49645/21
04/10/2021
Svetlomir Nikolov NESHKOV
1971
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49646/21
04/10/2021
Emil Dimitrov MILEV
1965
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49650/21
04/10/2021
Deniz Syuleymanov AHMEDOV
1989
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49757/21
04/10/2021
Ivan Stoyanov IVANOV
1965
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49759/21
04/10/2021
Chernyo Georgiev IVANOV
1976
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49762/21
04/10/2021
Eduard Dimitrov PAVLOV
1968
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49764/21
04/10/2021
Georgi Dimitrov DIMITROV
1982
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49765/21
04/10/2021
Dragomir Tanev MANOLOV
1982
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
49767/21
04/10/2021
Petar Mitev DEMIREV
1980
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49773/21
04/10/2021
Yuliyan Lyubomirov ZASHEV
1975
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49790/21
04/10/2021
Miroslav Sabev SABEV
1966
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
49799/21
04/10/2021
Dragomir Tanev MANOLOV
1982
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49800/21
04/10/2021
Miroslav Sabev SABEV
1966
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49801/21
04/10/2021
Nazam Nazmi AZIZ
1981
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49831/21
04/10/2021
Daniel Dimitrov DIMITROV
1974
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49837/21
04/10/2021
Halil Adem HASAN
1973
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
49839/21
04/10/2021
Ramadan Asanov SHERIFOV
1981
National parliamentary election, 04/04/2021
50434/21
04/10/2021
Memish Aliev MEMISHEV
1982
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5540/22
11/01/2022
Biser Yavorov MILANOV
1978
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5542/22
11/01/2022
Emil Georgiev KOSTADINOV
1966
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5544/22
11/01/2022
Halil Adem HASAN
1973
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5545/22
11/01/2022
Daniel Dimitrov DIMITROV
1974
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5546/22
11/01/2022
Deniz Syuleymanov AHMEDOV
1989
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5549/22
11/01/2022
Ivan Tsvetanov IVANOV
1983
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5551/22
11/01/2022
Eduard Dimitrov PAVLOV
1968
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5553/22
11/01/2022
Svetlomir Nikolov NESHKOV
1971
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5555/22
11/01/2022
Asen Hristov ASENOV
1976
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5681/22
11/01/2022
Ivan Nikolaev RIBOV
1979
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5682/22
11/01/2022
Georgi Dimitrov DIMITROV
1982
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5684/22
11/01/2022
Petar Mitev DEMIREV
1980
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5687/22
11/01/2022
Nikolay Stefanov PRAVCHEV
1974
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5688/22
11/01/2022
Tsvetan Georgiev RANGELOV
1961
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5691/22
11/01/2022
Hristo Atanasov ATANASOV
1959
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5692/22
11/01/2022
Chernyo Georgiev IVANOV
1976
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5711/22
11/01/2022
Ivan Stoyanov IVANOV
1965
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
5715/22
11/01/2022
Krasimir Tsvetkov KAMENOV
1974
National parliamentary election, 11/07/2021
26588/22
13/05/2022
Dragomir Tanev MANOLOV
1982
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26596/22
13/05/2022
Encho Kostadinov ENCHEV
1970
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26598/22
13/05/2022
Mitko Georgiev HARAKCHIEV
1968
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26615/22
13/05/2022
Biser Yavorov MILANOV
1978
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26618/22
13/05/2022
Emil Georgiev KOSTADINOV
1966
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26619/22
13/05/2022
Yuliyan Lyubomirov ZASHEV
1975
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26623/22
13/05/2022
Ivan Tsvetanov IVANOV
1983
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26626/22
13/05/2022
Svetlomir Nikolov NESHKOV
1971
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26635/22
13/05/2022
Asen Hristov ASENOV
1976
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
26644/22
13/05/2022
Tsvetan Georgiev RANGELOV
1961
National parliamentary election, 14/11/2021
6886/23
30/01/2023
Dragomir Tanev MANOLOV
1982
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6887/23
30/01/2023
Kosta Rumenov KIROV
1980
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6895/23
30/01/2023
Georgi Dimitrov DIMITROV
1982
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6908/23
30/01/2023
Eduard Dimitrov PAVLOV
1968
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6911/23
30/01/2023
Ivan Tsvetanov IVANOV
1983
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6912/23
30/01/2023
Yuliyan Lyubomirov ZASHEV
1975
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6914/23
30/01/2023
Krasimir Tsvetkov KAMENOV
1974
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
6920/23
30/01/2023
Svetlomir Nikolov NESHKOV
1971
National parliamentary election, 02/10/2022
30363/23
29/07/2023
Dragomir Tanev MANOLOV
1982
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023
30369/23
29/07/2023
Miroslav Sabev SABEV
1966
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023
30370/23
29/07/2023
Biser Yavorov MILANOV
1978
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023
30373/23
29/07/2023
Georgi Valev VALEV
1958
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023
30375/23
29/07/2023
Ivan Nikolaev RIBOV
1979
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023
30383/23
29/07/2023
Svetlomir Nikolov NESHKOV
1971
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023
30386/23
29/07/2023
Halil Adem HASAN
1973
National parliamentary election, 02/04/2023