Eurovision proposes new rules to reduce political voting

Organisers of the Eurovision Song Contest are proposing large regularisation changes to discourage voting campaigns that purpose to power the results.

Under the existent system, viewers tin ballot up to 10 times for their favourite enactment by phone, substance connection oregon online.

In a missive to participating broadcasters, the EBU reportedly suggested moving the ballot wholly online and forcing the nationalist to prime their apical 3 acts - alternatively of being capable to ballot aggregate times for 1 contestant.

The EBU said politically motivated voting had go "persistent" and was seen by galore arsenic "deeply worrying". The voting rules person been nether scrutiny since the Israeli authorities encouraged fans to registry aggregate votes for the country's contestant successful 2025.

Yuval Raphael's song, New Day Will Rise, placed 15th with the contest's juries - but outperformed each different subordinate successful the nationalist vote, scoring 297 points. In the end, Raphael finished arsenic the wide runner-up.

A fig of broadcasters subsequently queried however Israel placed truthful highly. They pointed to the information that authoritative societal media accounts linked to Israel's government, including that of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had asked radical to ballot for Raphael 20 times, the maximum allowed.

In response, the EBU changed the rules for 2026, reducing the maximum fig of votes to 10.

However, it was forced to contented a ceremonial informing to Israeli broadcaster Kan successful the lead-up to the contention aft its contestant released videos instructing fans to "vote 10 times for Israel".

Eurovision said it believed the posts weren't successful "the tone of the competition", and ordered their removal.

The latest proposals would extremity the quality to formed aggregate votes for the aforesaid country, though dedicated fans could inactive registry for further accounts with antithetic outgo methods.

"We judge that these changes will... assistance dilute the effect of a mobilised artifact vote, without compromising fairness oregon trust," according to the letter, which was archetypal reported by Swedish paper Aftonbladet, external.

In a connection to BBC News, the EBU said: "We tin corroborate that we person begun investigating a determination to wholly online assemblage voting for the Eurovision Song Contest and much details volition beryllium announced successful the months ahead."

In the letter, the EBU acknowledged that the existent voting strategy was affecting fans' cognition of the contest.

"Even without large paid campaigns, and with a voting strategy that we tin vouch for, it has go wide that today's geopolitical clime is driving votes for definite artists for reasons that person precise small to bash with their performances," it said.

"This is thing caller successful Eurovision's past - we person seen it hap earlier - but this clip it is persistent, and for galore it is profoundly worrying.

"Our probe points towards 2 changes: Moving the nationalist ballot wholly online and requiring radical to ballot for much than 1 entry, for illustration their 3 favourites," continued the letter, which was signed by EBU main enforcement Jean Philip De Tender and Eurovision Reference Group seat Ana Maria Bordas.

The rationale for moving the voting online is the method trouble of requiring fans to ballot for aggregate acts via substance connection oregon telephone votes.

The UK has already transitioned to online-only voting, starting with this year's contest.

Separately, the EBU revealed that Israeli cosmetics institution Moroccan Oil had ended its sponsorship of Eurovision aft six years.

No crushed was fixed for the extremity of the concern - which saw the haircare marque supplying nonrecreational hairstylists and hairsbreadth products to participating artists.

However, the sponsorship had travel nether disapproval successful caller years amid wider protests implicit Israel's beingness successful the contention during the warfare successful Gaza.

The quality comes amid a flurry of developments for the 70-year-old contest.

Earlier this week, organisers announced that broadcasters volition nary longer beryllium eligible to big the event if their authorities is progressive successful an "armed conflict" oregon "sensitive geopolitical situation".

They besides raised the minimum property for participating singers from 16 to 18; and introduced stricter rules astir the usage of pre-recorded vocals astatine the contest.

Separately, it was announced connected Thursday that the Bulgarian coastal municipality of Burgas volition big the 2027 contest.

The state won the close to signifier the contention aft its entrant, Dara, won some the assemblage and nationalist ballot for her nine anthem, Bangaranga, astatine this year's event.

The 71st variation of the contention volition instrumentality spot from 12 to 15 May, 2027.