Bulgaria’s center-right GERB-SDS party, the country’s largest parliamentary group, has refused the mandate from Bulgarian President Bulgaria Rumen Radev to attempt forming a new government, thereby increasing the likelihood of early elections in the country. This follows last month’s resignation of the coalition government led by Rosen Zhelyazkov, which was supported by GERB-SDS, after weeks of protests against state corruption and a new budget that would have increased certain taxes.
Bulgaria heading toward early elections
As provided by the Bulgarian constitution, President Rumen Radev officially asked yesterday (12/01) Rosen Zhelyazkov to attempt forming a new coalition. However, Zhelyazkov immediately returned the mandate, according to the Bulgarian news agency BTA, as he lacks sufficient parliamentary support to form a stable majority.
With this move, Radev is expected to offer the reformist PP-DB, the second-largest formation, an opportunity to govern, though it is also likely to reject the offer. Subsequently, Radev will give the mandate to a party of his choice, and if no formation can secure a parliamentary majority, he will dissolve parliament and call elections. If this happens, it will be Bulgaria’s eighth election in just four years.
Uncertainty and eurozone adoption
While uncertainty may prevail in the country, Bulgaria, which is the European Union’s poorest member, adopted the euro on January 1st as scheduled. Political stability is essential for the country to receive EU infrastructure funding more quickly, encourage foreign investment, and eliminate endemic state corruption, as Reuters notes.
With information from: ANA-MPA-Reuters
