site.btaSocialists Party, Movement for Rights and Freedoms Locked in Dispute over Second Place among Parties after Runoff Local Elections

Socialists Party, Movement for Rights and Freedoms Locked in Dispute over Second Place among Parties after Runoff Local Elections

Sofia, November 2 (BTA) - The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP)
and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) were locked in
dispute on Monday over who is the second biggest political force
 in Bulgaria after the second round of voting in local elections
 in Bulgaria on November 1.

At a post-election news briefing, MRF leader Lyutvi Mestan said
that his party is the second biggest in Bulgaria after GERB in
terms of municipal and mayoralty mayors elected as MRF-only
candidates. He cited official data showing that GERB have 118
mayors, MRF 33, BSP 32, the Reformist Bloc 7, the Bulgarian
Democratic Centre 2, the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary
Organisation 1, the National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria
 1, and another other 71 mayors are supported by local
coalitions and others.

According to Mestan, his party came third in terms of number of
votes and number of municipal councilors elected by single-party
 lists. The strategy to elbow MRF out of the political map has
failed, he commented. 
   
The MRF leader said that his party has won municipal councilors
in municipalities where they have never before had
representative, including Vidin, Berkovitsa, Montana, Vratsa,
Svishtov and Elena, among others.

At his party's after-election news conference, BSP leader Mihail
 Mikov said "it is good MRF don't claim to be first". "I believe
 we are the second political force. The proportional votes for
BSP were 390,000 and our partners from BSP-Left Bulgaria have
another 36,000 votes. The figures are clear and any other
interpretations are subjective. In 60 municipalities the mayors
are BSP's or supported by it. MRF have mayors in 34
municipalities," Mikov said.

Mikov admitted that his party has no mayor in a regional capital
 and said that it is a grave defeat. "It, however, does not
justify the insinuations about the expunging of BSP from the
national political map."

The BSP leader blamed the poor results of his party on what he
called "cash democracy which has emerged after this election and
 whose political platform is based on distribution of cash". 

The members of the BSP leadership said they would submit their
resignations to the party's National Council as their way to
take responsibility for the election results. Mikov himself said
 he would offer his resignation as party leader to the National
Council.  

MRF, too, conceded defeat in traditional MRF strongholds
including Gurmen, Isperih and Koubrat.

The MRF leader blamed the enormous number of invalid ballots,
465,000, for the party's performance at some places and said
they would organize "a huge explanatory campaign" in order to
reduce them to a minimum at the next elections.

Mestan also believes that another 150,000 votes were lost for
MRF due to the residence qualifications. VI/BR/LN/