Clearly outlined political picture after the parliamentary vote in Bulgaria

After eight parliamentary elections, a stable government seems to be emerging in Bulgaria. Pragmatism and a desire for change - this is what Bulgarians showed with their vote for the composition of the 52nd parliament. The new coalition "Progressive Bulgaria", headed by the former president Rumen Radev, convincingly came out on top. In its messages it named the greatest fears of the population, which is at the bottom of the income queue in the EU - inflation, political oligarchy and nearby wars.

"We want change!" was the most common motif on election day and the results brought the news of a complete shift of forces in the National Assembly. Although fragile, the majority of "Progressive Bulgaria" is a fact. After nearly 15 years at the parliamentary top, in these elections GERB-SDS entered a painful battle for second place with its traditional opponent "PP-DB" and registered a serious collapse in public support (just over 13%). It seems that the autumn protests, in which hundreds of thousands of Bulgarians took to the squares with the slogan "Peevski and Borissov out of power", found expression in the election results - Delyan Peevski's party "DPS-New Beginning", although remaining the leader in the vote of Bulgarians in Türkiye, won about 7 percent of the votes. Voter turnout in the country and abroad was nearly 10% higher compared to the autumn of 2024.

"We have overcome apathy, but distrust in Bulgarian politics is still high," Rumen Radev said on election night.

"This vote shows that the majority of Bulgarian society expects, cherishes and hopes for a different type of government - a government without Peevski and Borisov, a government without an oligarchic model. This was the reason they chose Progressive Bulgaria.” - Petar Vitanov from "Progressive Bulgaria", who was the leader of the list in Pernik, told the Bulgarian National Radio:

"The levels of this energy were on a historic scale. We knew something big was coming," he said. He pointed out that a government formed of one party is not some aspiration for authoritarianism, but rather allows for political compromises and taking responsibility. Vitanov highlighted the importance of forming a qualified majority on important topics such as changes in the judicial system and the Constitution, where he expects having similar positions with PP-DB. "We want to return to democracy. Rumen Radev has a solid position, which is increasingly being joined by European leaders. He does not have anti-European positions," Vitanov said. According to him it is a pity that the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) will not be part of the next National Assembly.

For the first time since the beginning of democratic changes 36 years ago, there will be no representatives of BSP in parliament – ​​a fact that can be considered a loss for parliamentarism. "The price is bitter, very salty, very painful, but sometimes you obviously have to go through such a bloodbath in order to recover and move forward," commented Alexander Simov from the National Council of the Bulgarian Socialist Party.

"BSP is unable to overcome the parliamentary threshold. However, this does not mean that BSP is dying and that the left-wing political culture in Bulgaria is disappearing. BSP is now given the opportunity to work very seriously on itself, so that it can understand what happened and see where and how it can change," Simov said in an interview with the Bulgarian National Radio.

For the first time in 29 years in the Bulgarian parliament, the coalition around Rumen Radev has achieved a majority that will allow it to form an independent government. It will be able to determine priority policies, among which the fight against corruption occupies a central place.

"Progressive Bulgaria" has "sucked out” the support of all the previous parliamentary forces. Whether this will lead to dizziness and revanchism is a question that is hovering in space today. "If Rumen Radev is a far-sighted and long-term player, he will not go down the path of revanchism," journalist Diyan Bozhidarov told the Bulgarian National Radio:

"He has undoubtedly won all the power now, but there will probably be some party or public corrective. And here is the delicate moment – ​​it is more than clear that the Supreme Judicial Council and the Prosecutor General will be replaced, as there will be a majority for this. But the really big problem is what will happen next, because it is very wrong to use a synonym between judicial reform and justice," he commented. The journalist recalls that the Bulgarian has always liked the figure of the man with strong hand, "some image that can solve problems", and this also tipped the scales towards this distinctive election victory. "Now the responsibility falls on Radev. There are hopes, there are expectations. He will pay the price," Bozhidarov said.

Compiled by: Elena Karkalanova