Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) received the second mandate to form a government and immediately returned it unfulfilled to President Rumen Radev. As he did so, outgoing Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov of CC-DB said that GERB and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) want snap parliamentary elections and what is happening is the result of their desire.
The government mandate reached CC-DB after GERB failed to form a Cabinet following long and difficult talks with CC-DB.
With early elections now seeming almost imminent, most parties in Parliament declared that they were in favour of holding early national elections simultaneously with the European elections due this summer. President Rumen Radev, however, made it clear that it is an unlikely scenario.
The declined mandate and what the President said
In the mandate-handing procedure Wednesday afternoon, CC-DB Co-leader Kiril Petkov told the President that party’s Prime Minister-designate was Nikolay Denkov but that the designation was purely formal and only meant to observe the Constitution, and that Denkov would return the mandate.
Denkov told the President that he is returning the mandate unfulfilled because in the current National Assembly there is no longer support neither for the governance programme that CC-DB adopted together with GERB-UDF ten months ago, nor for the reforms that were the basis for the formation of the outgoing government.
According to Denkov, there were no doubts that the negotiation process was conducted "pro forma" with the clear awareness that the country will be sent to elections. Denkov reasoned his statement with the example of the tabled composition of the Council of Ministers - "the agreement signed unilaterally on a text that was not agreed, four times the other negotiating team got up and left the hall (during the negotiations) without it being clear what was happening next".
Denkov said that the Bulgarian people would again, unfortunately, "have to decide where to go from here". “One option is to go back to where racketeering was the norm and everyone had to put up with it and submit to it. The other is to continue with Bulgaria's European path of development, where incomes increase and businesses and people can rely on the protection and support of the state when they are in a difficult situation,” Denkov said.
The President pointed out that the CC-DB had made efforts until the last moment for Bulgaria to have a regular government.
Then he criticized them over the constitutional amendments made in connection with the caretaker governments, which prior to that were the head of State's prerogative. "I urged against making any hasty changes in the Constitution, especially regarding the caretaker cabinet," President Radev recalled. "You made them and now the questions are much more than the answers," he added.
"I will do my utmost to ensure that the process of choosing a caretaker cabinet does not escalate into a constitutional crisis. You have done everything possible to severely limit the powers of the presidential institution," Radev said.
"In less than ten days, I will invite all political parties for consultations to make a final decision as enshrined in the Constitution," he added.
"I did not refer the justice reform to the Constitutional Court, but I referred the other amendments with the complete realization that these changes will lead to crises and one such crisis is already knocking on the door," Radev said.
"Again, the Bulgarian citizens will decide how the country will move forward, but it is very important in what conditions they will do so. I don't know if you are aware of the processes that have already been unleashed as a result of the amendments to the Constitution that you also initiated," the head of State said.
Parties want 2-in-1 elections. Too late for that, the President says
CC-DB co-leader Kiril Petkov's called on the President to step up the constitutional procedure involving the third mandate, consultations with the political parties and the appointment of a caretaker government. That would make it possible to hold the Bulgarian general elections together with the European Parliament elections.
Radev said that it is already very late for such a request.
The parties in Parliament are mostly in favour of 2-in-1 elections.
TISP floor leader Toshko Yordanov told reporters Wednesday that it would be a good option to hold snap parliamentary elections and European elections at the same time because it is the best option, logistically and financially. He also believes that it may produce higher turnout.
Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) leader Korneliya Ninova said there is more than one reason to want 2-in-1 elections: first, that is would be cost-effective, and secondly - because the voter turnout would be higher.
Movement for Rights and Freedoms co-leader Delyan Peevski said a while back that 2-in-1 elections are not good for the country but are good for his party.
Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov said Wednesday that his party is indifferent to whether national elections will be held together with the European elections, as long as there are snap elections.
What’s next
The next step under the Constitution is for the head of State to present the mandate to one of the minor parliamentary groups, who may try to form a government but its chances are slim.
The Constitution leaves it to the President to choose the party to which he will offer the mandate. Also, the Constitution does not set a time limit for the third mandate.
The Movement for Rights and Freedoms, BSP for Bulgaria and There Is Such a People have already said that they would return unused a government mandate, should the President decide to offer it to them, while Vazrazhdane said that while they are ready to propose a government, but are aware that it would not be supported by the legislature. If the third attempt to form a regular government fails, the President, following consultations with the parliamentary groups, will appoint a caretaker government headed by one of the following individuals: the Parliament Chair, the central bank governor or vice governor, the National Audit Office head or their deputy, the National Ombudsman or their deputy. The main task of the caretaker government will be to organize free and fair elections, which will take place within two months.
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