1896 Bulgarian parliamentary election

1896 Bulgarian parliamentary election

←  1894 17 November 1896 1899  →

All 165 seats in the National Assembly 83 seats needed for a majority

Party Leader Seats +/– People's Party Konstantin Stoilov 150 +74 Radoslavist Liberals Vasil Radoslavov 7 −30 Stambolovist Liberals Dimitar Grekov 3 +3 Karavelist Liberals Petko Karavelov 2 −6 Socialists Yanko Sakazov Dimitar Blagoev 2 −2 Tsankovist Liberals Dragan Tsankov 1 −39 This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below. Prime Minister before Prime Minister after Konstantin Stoilov Stoilov III (NP) Konstantin Stoilov Stoilov III (NP)

Parliamentary elections were held in Bulgaria on 17 November 1896 to elect members of the IX Ordinary National Assembly. Despite the fact that the four Liberal opposition factions cooperated and ran on a joint list in many constituencies, the result was a victory for the ruling People's Party. ^[1] The elections were marred by disturbances, particularly in Sofia. ^[2]

Results

Party		Seats
	People's Party	150
	Radoslavist Liberals	7
	Stambolovist Liberals	3
	Karavelist Liberals	2
	Socialists	2
	Tsankovist Liberals	1
Total		165
Source: Zornitsa [3]

Aftermath

Konstantin Stoilov continued his term as Prime Minister. His government implemented tax cuts and increased tariffs and this period saw the construction of a number of new railway lines. However Bulgaria began to increasingly rely on foreign (predominantly Austrian and French) debt, with the increasing budget deficits, which eventually led to a financial crisis. ^[4] Stoilov resigned in January 1899 after Parliament voted down another proposed loan. ^[5]

Independent former Stambolovist party leader Dimitar Grekov (who had been succeeded by Dimitar Petkov), was appointed PM. Following negotiations he formed a government with the Radoslavist liberals, and the two parties merged in March. ^[6]

References

1. Svoboden Grazhdanin newspaper, issue 18, 23 Nov 1896
2. "Latest Intelligence", The Times, 30 November 1896
3. ""Zornitsa newspaper, issue 48, 30 Nov 1896"".
4. Tsurakov, Angel. Encyclopedia of Governments, National Assemblies, and Assassinations in Bulgaria. Sofia, Trud Publishing House, 2008. ISBN 954-528-790-X, p. 61-66.
5. Todorova, Tsavetana (2009). History of the state foreign debt of Bulgaria 1878 – 1990 vol. I (PDF). Sofia: Bulgarian National Bank. pp. 69–71. ISBN   978-954-8579-18-6 . Retrieved 2026-01-10.
6. Georgiev, Biser. On the matter of the "unification" and "division" of the Liberals and the People's Liberals in 1899, "History" vol 4, 2023.