ABSTRACT
A few have augmented this assertion with one of national or multinational collective identity. As in other times and places, this dilemma is politically salient throughout post-communist Europe because the conditions that give rise to it are empirically pervasive. In Bulgaria, a prohibition against ethnic minority representation was implemented prior to the 1991 elections through provisions contained in the July 12, 1991, Constitution and in the August 20, 1991, Electoral Law. In Romania’s initial multi-party elections in May 1990, only three ethnic minority organizations managed to obtain representation on the strength of their popular support. The political relevance of an ethnic minority—its size, degree of self-consciousness, level of mobilization, support from neighboring states, and, in the latter case, inter-state relations—profoundly affects how it is treated by the existing electoral legislation. In Romania’s initial multi-party elections in May 1990, only three ethnic minority organizations managed to obtain representation on the strength of their popular support.
