2024-09-17 00:39:57
Tsvetanov made an alliance with the people of Sofianski, and with the extravagant name “My country Bulgaria” two left-wing formations will attract the admirers of Emil Dimitrov
A total of 64 parties will fight for the trust of 6.6 million voters in the October 27 election. However, 39 of them have united in 9 coalitions. Thus, in the end, 34 political players will be recorded on the ballot. However, this is not a record – in June there were 42 parties in 11 coalitions, another 23 parties appeared alone. In April 2023, 28 parties entered 7 coalitions, another 23 played alone.
Until September 21 is the deadline in which the parties can make changes in the composition of the coalitions.
Who chose to play with whom in the vote for the 51st National Assembly? The shifting of layers in two of the main political formations – DPS and BSP – led to new configurations with old faces. (See infographic.)
For the first time, for example, 5 formations have targeted the once monolithic votes of the DPS.
After a 10-day legal and administrative outplay by the camps of Delyan Peevski and Jevdet Chakarov, the CEC finally registered for participation in the “DPS – New Beginning” vote. He did it after the decision by the Supreme Court, which ruled that Peevski’s coalition was the first to submit documents and should be registered by law. Together with the DPS, there are also two small formations – “Bulgarian Voice” and “New Leaders”.
Over the weekend, Delyan Peevski gathered regional chairmen, mayors of the DPS and coordinators from Turkey
at an extended meeting for the pre-election campaign. The criteria for nominations for people’s representatives from “DPS – A New Beginning” and the main priorities on which the program prepared by them for the future management of Bulgaria will be based were discussed.
Jevdet Chakarov lost both the independent registration of DPS and the opportunity to be with the “DPS – Democracy, Rights and Freedoms” coalition. Thus, Ahmed Dogan, who is rumored to be a candidate for parliament after more than 10 years out of active politics, will have to go to the elections with the “Alliance for Rights and Freedoms”, which includes the Agricultural People’s Union of Rumen Yonchev and SBOR party.
However, the abbreviation DPS is present in the name of at least one more formation that will participate in these elections. This is the “National Movement for Rights and Freedoms” (NDPS), created years ago by the former deputy chairman of the movement, Guner Tahir.
The DPS electorate also includes the “People’s Party Freedom and Dignity” (NPSD), founded by the former vice-chairman of the movement Kasim Dahl, and the party “Democrats for Responsibility, Freedom and tolerance” (DOST). It is not the first time that the three formations have played in elections, but they did not particularly attract the votes of the DPS, with the exception of 2017 – shortly after Mestan established the DOST, which then received nearly 100,000 votes.
After the resignation of Cornelia Ninova and the shake-up in the BSP, the centenarian is going to the elections with 13 more parties.
Despite the requests for the great left unification, however, there are other formations
in this political niche, who play alone or in other coalitions. One of them is the socialist party “Bulgarian Path” of Angel Dimov, who in one of the previous elections in 2021 even made an attempt to return Zhan Videnov to politics.
The parties “Bulgarian Left” and “United Social Democracy” will try to gather support from the fans of the legend Emil Dimitrov, registering a coalition with a name almost like one of his most iconic songs – “My Country Bulgaria”. The CEC is still checking their signatures.
There are also changes in the combinations on the right. After “Volt” was the mandate holder for PP, and then their partner on two votes, now the formation will play alone. In early September, Nastimir Ananiev’s party was thrown out of the PP-DB coalition.
After smoothing the tension between them, “Change” is again going to the elections with “Yes, Bulgaria” and DSB.
Former PP MP Ivan Hristanov will try his hand at “Edinenie”, which he founded last year together with Ivan Manev.
Radostin Vasilev, who was an MP first from ITN and then from PP, is again playing alone with his MECH party.
The right-wing parties will have competition from the “Blue Bulgaria” coalition, in which Peter Moskov and Prof. Vili Lilkov bring together 7 formations, including the tsarist NDSV.
Former right-hand man of Boyko Borisov, Tsvetan Tsvetanov will represent the “Free Voters” coalition. His party “Republicans for Bulgaria”, the Union of Free Democrats, founded by Stefan Sofianski, and now headed by Radoslav Katsarov, as well as the Green Union, are going to the elections with her.
Victoria Vasileva made an attempt to participate in these elections with a new formation. However, she and some of the former deputies of Velichie – the musician Etienne Levi and the ranger Darin Georgiev – will not have a chance to try for a new mandate in the parliament, since they did not collect the necessary 2,500 signatures and the CEC cut off the registration of the coalition “It Makes Sense” “. Vasileva used the court registration of two smaller formations – Bulgarian Social Democratic Party and “Be Courageous”.
However, Ivelin Mihailov and the Velichie party with chairman Albena Pekova received registration from the CEC. And Mihailov himself announced that he will probably lead the list in Pleven.
In July, the extravagant Georgi Georgiev-Gotti changed the name of his party BNO and will now play with Bulgari. In the spring of 2021, Vasil Bozhkov did not receive registration for his own formation, and BNO provided him with its own.