Stara Zagora — Direct Citizen-Government Connection
BlitzPoll connects 180,000 citizens with their municipality across 51 settlements — rated in the Top 9 European governance innovations
The Challenge
The Municipality of Stara Zagora, serving a population of 180,000 across 51 settlements, had no systematic way to hear from its citizens about municipal services. Feedback was channeled through slow, bureaucratic complaint mechanisms — paper forms, phone calls to overloaded hotlines, and in-person visits — that discouraged all but the most determined residents from participating. The result was a deeply skewed picture of public sentiment, dominated by extreme dissatisfaction and missing the silent majority entirely.
Municipal leadership had no data-driven view of which services, neighborhoods, or facilities needed urgent attention. Decisions about capital investments, staffing, and service improvements were guided by political intuition and anecdotal reports rather than evidence. There was no way to compare citizen satisfaction across kindergartens, parks, administrative offices, or transport services — let alone track whether improvements actually moved the needle.
The disconnect between citizens and their local government was widening. Residents felt unheard, municipal leaders operated in an information vacuum, and the gap between public expectation and service delivery continued to grow without a mechanism to close it.
The Solution
BlitzPoll deployed QR codes at over 600 locations across all 51 settlements within the municipality. Every point of citizen interaction received its own feedback channel — kindergartens, playgrounds, healthcare facilities, parks, district mayors' offices, city transport stops, administrative service counters, train stations, sports facilities, tourism sites, and schools. Citizens scan a QR code with their phone and provide an anonymous rating in under 30 seconds, removing every barrier to participation.
A real-time dashboard gives the mayor and department heads an always-current view of satisfaction levels across all categories and locations. Each feedback point is mapped to a specific service and settlement, enabling granular analysis: which kindergarten in which village has declining satisfaction, which park in the city center receives the most complaints, and which administrative office delivers consistently excellent service. Automated alerts flag sudden drops in satisfaction, enabling rapid response before small issues become public crises.
The system covers over 300 distinct topics, creating the most comprehensive picture of citizen satisfaction ever assembled for a Bulgarian municipality. Every piece of feedback is anonymous, encouraging honest responses, and the entire process is mobile-native — no app downloads, no registration, no personal data required.
Gallery
Results
Stara Zagora's citizen feedback system was selected as a Top 9 project out of more than 300 European entries in the Innovation in Politics Awards 2025 — a recognition that placed a Bulgarian municipality among the continent's most forward-thinking governance initiatives. The award validated the approach of using technology to create direct, low-friction channels between citizens and their local government.
The model proved so effective that it became a template for municipal digital governance across Bulgaria. The municipalities of Teteven, Vratsa, and Blagoevgrad adopted the same platform, creating a growing network of data-driven local governments. Each new municipality benefits from the patterns and best practices established in Stara Zagora, accelerating their own deployments.
Most importantly, citizens now have a direct, anonymous voice in how their city is run. The municipality prioritizes capital investments and service improvements based on actual citizen satisfaction data rather than political assumptions. Budget allocation, staffing decisions, and infrastructure projects are informed by the real needs of 180,000 residents — measured continuously, not once every four years at the ballot box.
"For the first time, every citizen has an equal voice — anonymous, instant, and impossible to ignore. This is what modern governance looks like."
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