Bulgarian parliamentary election, 2017

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Bulgarian parliamentary election, 2017
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Turnout54.07%
PartyLeader%Seats±
GERB Boyko Borisov 32.65%95+11
BSP Korneliya Ninova 27.19%80+41
United Patriots Valeri Simeonov, Krasimir Karakachanov and Volen Siderov 9.07%27-3
DPS Mustafa Karadaya 8.99%26-12
Volya Veselin Mareshki 4.15%12New
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
Prime Minister beforePrime Minister after
Ognyan Gerdzhikov
NDSV 		Boyko Borisov
GERB 		Boyko Borissov 2017-11-03.jpg
Bulgaria
Coat of arms of Bulgaria.svg
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Bulgaria

Parliamentary elections were held in Bulgaria on 26 March 2017. They had originally been scheduled for 2018 at the end of the four-year term of the National Assembly. However, following the resignation of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and the failure of Bulgarian parties to form a government, early elections were called. [1] Borisov resigned following the defeat of Tsetska Tsacheva, the candidate of his GERB party, in the November 2016 presidential elections. [2] [3] The official election campaign began on 24 February. [4]

Bulgaria country in Southeast Europe

Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, and the Black Sea to the east. The capital and largest city is Sofia; other major cities are Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas. With a territory of 110,994 square kilometres (42,855 sq mi), Bulgaria is Europe's 16th-largest country.

National Assembly (Bulgaria) parliament of Bulgaria

The National Assembly is the unicameral parliament and legislative body of the Republic of Bulgaria.

Prime Minister of Bulgaria

The Prime Minister of Bulgaria is the head of government of Bulgaria. He or she is the leader of a political coalition in the Bulgarian parliament – known as the National Assembly of Bulgaria – and the leader of the cabinet.

Contents

GERB won a plurality, with 95 of the 240 seats. Borisov was elected Prime Minister again after negotiating a governing coalition. [5]

Third Borisov Government

The ninety-third Cabinet of Bulgaria took office on May 4, 2017. It is a coalition government that is chaired by Boyko Borisov. The government was formed after the Borisov's party, GERB, won the 2017 parliamentary election. However, GERB won only 95 out of 240 seats in the National Assembly and therefore needed to form a coalition in order to govern.

Background

During the 2016 presidential election campaign, Borisov promised to resign if his party's candidate, Chairperson of the National Assembly Tsetska Tsacheva, lost the election.

Chairperson of the National Assembly of Bulgaria

The Chairperson of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria presides over the Bulgarian Parliament. The chairperson's term coincides with the term of the assembly, and he or she is chosen by a vote during the opening session.

On 6 November 2016 Tsacheva finished second in the first round to BSP-backed Major General Rumen Radev, receiving only 22% of the popular vote compared to Radev's 25.4%. [6] Following the result, Borisov reiterated his promise to resign if his party's candidate lost the runoff election a week later. On November 13, 2016, she finished a distant second with only 36.2% of the popular vote compared to Radev's 59.4%. [7]

Bulgarian Socialist Party political party

The Bulgarian Socialist Party, known as the Centenarian, is a social-democratic political party in Bulgaria and the successor to the Bulgarian Communist Party. It is a member of the Party of European Socialists with a pro-EU stance, although it has taken some euroskeptic positions and called for an end to EU sanctions against Russia. BSP is also a member of the Socialist International. It is Bulgaria's largest political party by membership.

Rumen Radev President of Bulgaria

Rumen Georgiev Radev is a Bulgarian politician and former Major General who is the current President of Bulgaria since January 22, 2017. Radev previously served as Commander of the Bulgarian Air Force. He won the 2016 presidential election, as an independent candidate supported by the Bulgarian Socialist Party, defeating GERB candidate Tsetska Tsacheva in the second round.

Borisov, staying true to his campaign promise, subsequently resigned on 14 November. [8] Two days later, the National Assembly voted 218–0 to accept it. [9]

Electoral system

The 240 members of the National Assembly are elected by closed list proportional representation from 31 multi-member constituencies ranging in size from 4 to 16 seats. The electoral threshold is 4%. [10]

Closed list describes the variant of party-list proportional representation where voters can (effectively) only vote for political parties as a whole and thus have no influence on the party-supplied order in which party candidates are elected. If voters have at least some influence then it is called an open list.

Proportional representation (PR) characterizes electoral systems in which divisions in an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. If n% of the electorate support a particular political party, then roughly n% of seats will be won by that party. The essence of such systems is that all votes contribute to the result - not just a plurality, or a bare majority. The most prevalent forms of proportional representation all require the use of multiple-member voting districts, as it is not possible to fill a single seat in a proportional manner. In fact, the implementations of PR that achieve the highest levels of proportionality tend to include districts with large numbers of seats.

Bulgarians abroad were able to vote in 371 voting sections in 70 foreign countries and territories. Some territories were excluded from this provision due to either security concerns (e.g. Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria) or that very few resident Bulgarian nationals resident in the country had submitted requests to be enabled to vote (e.g. Ethiopia, Indonesia, Mongolia, North Korea and Pakistan). [11]

Participating parties

The deadline for political parties to register for the election was 8 February 2017. [12] Despite holding 15 seats in the Assembly, Reload Bulgaria chose not to compete in the election after being initially refused a name change, among other reasons. [13] The list of registered parties is below. [14]

Party or coalitionLeaderIdeologyEuropean affiliation
GERB Boyko Borisov Conservatism, pro-Europeanism, populism European People's Party
BSP for Bulgaria Bulgarian Socialist Party Korneliya Ninova Socialism, Social democracy Party of European Socialists
Agrarian Union "Aleksandar Stamboliyski" Spas PanchevAgrarianism
Communist Party of Bulgaria Aleksandar Paunov Marxism–Leninism
New DawnMincho Minchev Left-wing nationalism
Ecoglasnost Green politics, Environmentalism
Trakia
DPS Mustafa Karadaya Liberal democracy, Bulgarian Turk's minority rights and interests Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
United Patriots National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria Valeri Simeonov Bulgarian nationalism, national conservatism, Euroscepticism, populism Movement for a Europe of Liberties and Democracy
Attack Volen Siderov Bulgarian nationalism, Euroscepticism, populism Identity, Tradition, Sovereignty
IMRO – Bulgarian National Movement Krasimir Karakachanov Bulgarian nationalism, national conservatism, populism European Conservatives and Reformists
Average European ClassGeorgi ManevBulgarian nationalism, national conservatism, populism
Union of the Patriotic Forces "Defense"Nikolay ZaharievBulgarian nationalism
Reformist Bloc Bulgarian Agrarian National Union Nikolay Nenchev Agrarianism
Bulgarian new democracyBorislav VelikovLiberalism
Bulgaria for Citizens Movement Meglena Kuneva Centrism
Union of Democratic Forces Bozhidar Lukarski Christian democracy, pro-Europeanism, conservatism European People's Party
People's Voice Svetoslav Vitkov Populism
Bulgarian Democratic ForumZhaklin TolevaDemocracy
Volya Veselin Mareshki Populism, Russophilia, Liberal democracy
ABV – Movement 21 Alternative for Bulgarian Revival Konstantin ProdanovSocial democracy, Russophilia
Movement 21 Tatyana Doncheva
Movement "Yes, Bulgaria" Yes, Bulgaria! Hristo Ivanov Anti-Corruption
The Greens Zaritsa Georgieva, Vladislav PanevGreen politics, Environmentalism European Green Party
DEOSViktor LilovLiberalism
Coalition of dissatisfiedBulgarian Social Democracy – EuroLeftDimitar MitevSocial democracy
Christian Social UnionChristian democracy
Party of the GreensVladimir NikolovGreen politics, Environmentalism European Green Party
WHO – Bulgarian Left and Green Party Bulgarian Left Hristofor Dochev, Margarita Mileva, Ivan GenovDemocratic socialism Party of the European Left
WHO – Competence, Responsibility and Truth
Green Party of Bulgaria Green politics, Environmentalism European Green Party
New Republic Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria Radan Kanev National conservatism, pro-Europeanism European People's Party
Union for Plovdiv
Bulgarian democratic community
Bulgarian democratic center Krasimira Kovachka, Stefan KenovConservatism
Movement for Radical Change "Bulgarian Spring" Velizar Enchev Left-wing nationalism
Bulgarian National AssociationGeorgi Georgiev
Revival Kostadin Kostadinov Bulgarian nationalism
National Republican PartyMladen Mladenov
Movement for an Equal Public Model Iliya Iliev Rights and interests of Gypsies
Movement Forward BulgariaZornitsa Todorova
Association DOST Democrats for Responsibility, Solidarity and Tolerance (DOST) Lyutvi Mestan Turkish minority rights and interests, Good relations with Turkey
People's Party "Freedom and Dignity"Orhan IsmailovLiberalism

Opinion polls

Bulgarian Opinion Polling, Weekly Average.png

Percentages do not account for undecided voters. 'Date' column signifies the last date of the survey in question, not the date of publication.

SourceDateSample sizeMargin of error GERB BSP DPS United Patriots RB Volya Yes, Bulgaria! ABV Others / None Lead
2014 election5 October 201432.7%15.4%14.8%11.8% 8.9%––4.2%12.2%
Trend 17 January 20171,002± 3.1%32.2%29.3%7.8%10.4%3.7%5.9%0.7%1.0%9.0%2.9%
Alpha Research 22 January 20171,024± 3.0%32.6%28.8%7.8%10.7%3.8%4.4%2.3%1.4%8.2%3.8%
Estat 22 January 20171,000± 3.1%36.1%27.5%6.0%7.0%2.4%8.4%0.9%1.9%9.8%8.6%
Gallup 30 January 2017816± 3.5%27.6%28.7%8.2%11.9%4.3%7.7%2.0%1.9%7.7%1.1%
CAM 7 February 20171,012± 3.1%29.2%28.1%9.6%7.5%3.7%5.2%1.5%0.9%14.3%1.1%
Trend 9 February 20171,002± 3.1%29.7%28.7%9.0%9.9%3.4%6.5%2.3%2.0%8.5%1.0%
Sova Haris 20 February 20171,003± 3.0%31.3%31.6%6.4%10.3%6.3%7.2%0.5%3.0%3.4%0.3%
Alpha Research 23 February 20171,024± 3.0%31.5%29.6%6.8%10.8%3.9%5.7%2.6%2.9%6.2%1.9%
AFIS [ permanent dead link ]27 February 20171,200± 3.0%28.2%30.5%6.7%8.5%4.5%5.1%1.3%3.3%12.0%2.3%
Estat 28 February 20171,000± 3.1%29.5%30.2%6.4%8.6%3.9%11.8%2.3%1.5%5.8%0.7%
Gallup 5 March 20171,003± 3.1%28.3%30.2%8.2%11.9%4.3%7.4%2.3%2.6%4.8%1.9%
Institute of Modern Politics 6 March 2017827± 3.1%29.1%29.0%7.3%9.5%3.5%5.8%1.7%4.1%10.0%0.1%
Gallup 15 March 20171,012± 3.0%29.9%30.3%8.1%11.5%4.4%6.5%2.3%2.4%3.6%0.4%
Estat 15 March 20171,000± 3.1%29.7%27.2%8.3%8.6%6.1%10.5%1.3%2.6%5.7%2.5%
AFIS 16 March 20171,010± 3.0%31.2%31.5%8.5%9.9%4.4%5.3%1.1%4.1%4.1%0.3%
Trend 16 March 20171,004± 3.1%29.8%27.9%8.7%10.2%3.8%7.3%2.1%2.6%7.6%1.9%
CAM 16 March 20171,012± 3.1%29.6%29.0%10.8%10.0%3.5%6.2%1.9%1.5%7.5%0.6%
Mediana 20 March 20171,010± 3.0%26.6%27.7%11.1%10.2%5.1%9.6%1.1%4.0%4.6%1.1%
Institute of Modern Politics 20 March 2017805± 3.1%28.5%29.0%9.1%10.1%4.0%9.6%2.0%4.5%3.2%0.5%
Gallup 21 March 20171,012± 3.0%27.1%26.5%9.7%12.3%3.8%8.2%2.4%2.6%7.4%0.6%
Alpha Research 22 March 20171,033± 3.0%31.7%29.1%8.4%8.9%4.0%6.8%2.5%2.9%5.7%2.6%
Exacta 22 March 20171,000± 3.0%31.2%28.1%7.6%10.5%4.0%6.5%1.5%2.6%8.0%3.1%
^ Combined result of the Patriotic Front and Attack.

Results

Five parties met the 4% threshold required to gain seats. GERB maintained their position as the largest party.

PartyVotes%Seats+/–
GERB 1,147,29232.6595+11
BSP for Bulgaria 955,49027.1980+41
United Patriots 318,5139.0727–3
Movement for Rights and Freedoms 315,9768.9926−12
Volya 145,6374.1512New
Reformist Bloc 107,4073.060−23
Yes, Bulgaria! 101,1772.8800
Association DOST 100,4792.860New
New Republic 86,9842.480New
ABV–Movement 2154,4121.550−11
Revival 37,8961.080New
Party of the Greens10,1590.2900
Bulgarian Spring9,2320.260New
Forward Bulgaria Movement6,6440.190New
Coalition of the Dissatisfied5,9450.170New
Movement for an Equal Public Model4,9890.140New
Bulgarian National Association3,9210.110New
Bulgarian Democratic Centre 3,1300.090New
WHO–BL–ZP 2,9160.0800
National Republican Party2,3250.070New
Independents5,1160.1500
None of the above87,8502.50––
Invalid/blank votes169,009–––
Total3,682,4991002400
Registered voters/turnout6,838,23553.85––
Source: CIK

Aftermath and government formation

Boyko Borisov appeared set to resume his tenure as Prime Minister, possibly with a coalition with the United Patriots, [15] and ultimately formed the Third Borisov Government with the United Patriots.

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References

  1. ↑ Bulgaria Heads for Early Elections Balkan Insight, 20 December 2016
  2. ↑ Bulgaria Sliding Toward Caretaker Govt, But with Same Parliament Novinite, 13 November 2016
  3. ↑ Bulgarian PM Borisov resigns, snap parliamentary polls likely Reuters, 14 November 2016
  4. ↑ "Election Campaign Starts in Bulgaria". novinite.com. Novinite JSC. 24 February 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
  5. ↑ Hope, Kerin; Troev, Theodor (27 March 2017). "Former PM Borisov claims victory in Bulgarian election". Financial Times. Retrieved 28 March 2017.(subscription required)
  6. ↑ "Резултати за президент и вицепрезидент на републиката-I Тур". cik.bg. Central Electoral Commission. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  7. ↑ "Резултати за президент и вицепрезидент на републиката-II Тур". cik.bg. Central Electoral Commission. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  8. ↑ Bulgarian PM Borisov tenders his government resignation Reuters, 14 November 2016
  9. ↑ "Bulgarian MPs Accept PM Borisov's Resignation". Novinite.com. Sofia News Agency. 16 November 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  10. ↑ Bulgaria IFES
  11. ↑ Central Electoral Commission – Decision #4400 – March 4, 2017
  12. ↑ "Bulgaria's Early Election: Parties' Registration Deadline Expires". novinite.com. Sofia News Agency. 8 February 2017. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  13. ↑ "Reload Bulgaria Party Not to Participate in March 26 Elections". bta.bg. 21 February 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
  14. ↑ https://www.cik.bg/bg/ns2017/registers/parties
  15. ↑ Georgiev, Ognyan (27 March 2017). "Bulgaria's Borisov is Back — But Coalition May be Shaky". Politico . Retrieved 27 March 2017.
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