Bulgaria - May 2023

The opposing centrist parties, Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB)/United Democratic Forces, and the We Continue the Change/Democratic Bulgaria bloc (PP-DB) reached a coalition agreement on 22 May, which was voted on by the parliament in June. The parties have agreed on an 18-month “expert” cabinet, which will be led by rotating prime ministers. The solution comes after a period of political stalemate and five elections in the past two years. PP-DB, which had promised it would not enter a coalition with GERB, said the deal aimed at safeguarding the country's European future and addressing the risk posed by the “threat of timeless interim cabinets.” Nikolai Denkov from “We Continue the Change” will serve as the prime minister for the first nine months, while former EU commissioner Mariya Gabriel, GERB’s designate, will take over for the subsequent nine months. The main objectives of the government will be constitutional and judicial reforms, combatting high-level corruption, full-fledged EU membership, and reintroducing electronic voting to tackle electoral fraud.

Sources: Bulgarian Parliament, Dnevnik, Balkan Insight, Politico

Bulgaria is facing a rule of law crisis as the chief prosecutor, Ivan Geshev, claims to have survived an explosion near his car. However, suspicions have emerged that the incident may have been staged by Geshev himself to undermine judicial reforms seeking his removal. Geshev's controversial appointment, lack of progress in high-profile cases, and close ties to former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov (who allegedly rescued him from an extortion probe) have raised concerns about his obstruction of EU rule of law standards. The crisis has escalated into a public confrontation between Geshev and Borissov, with the latter facing pressure to support judicial reforms that would remove Geshev from office.

Sources: Darik News, Balkan Insight (1), Balkan Insight (2), Politico