BSP Leader, Atanas Zafirov, Will Not Stand on the Lists for the Upcoming Elections

Outgoing Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), Atanas Zafirov, gave a critical evaluation of his party’s participation in government in an interview on 'More from the Day' on January 30, acknowledging that BSP emerged weakened but prioritised the national interest over narrow party considerations. He also announced that he will not stand on the next parliamentary lists to make way for new faces.

“The fact is that BSP, as a party, comes out of this government weakened. We were aware of this from the very beginning when we took on the heavy responsibility of putting the state’s interest above the party’s,” Zafirov said.

According to him, the government functioned as a centre-left administration, and key social policies and budgets were realised thanks to the active role of BSP.

“I want to make it clear – I stand behind everything our ministers and parliamentary participants have achieved,” he said.

Zafirov rejected accusations that the party acted “obediently” to the will of Boyko Borisov or Delyan Peevski, emphasising that he engaged with all parliamentary forces to secure support for the social components of the budget.

“I can quote Boyko Borisov, who said that this government survived thanks to BSP. I sought allies for the social part of the budget, so that our participation would make sense and we could assert our role as the social pillar of this government,” he explained.

He described the National Council’s decision to convene a Congress with a single agenda item – the removal of the party leader – as elitist and contradictory. Zafirov insisted that the Congress should take place after the elections, rather than before, to prevent the party from being drawn into an internal conflict.

“On one hand, it gives a positive assessment of our participation in government, but on the other, it calls a Congress with a single item – the replacement of the leader. This decision is deeply inexplicable. Pulling BSP into a destructive internal war at this moment leads nowhere,” he said.

Zafirov warned that rejecting participation in government would be “a crude and treacherous mistake” that could isolate BSP for years.

“BSP would be placed on a track from which it would take decades to emerge,” he added.

He also announced that he will not appear on the next parliamentary lists, to give space to younger, qualified members of the party.

“BSP should open its lists to young, capable people and listen to the voice of society. I am stepping back and signalling that I will not participate in the next parliamentary lists,” he said.

Zafirov stressed that he has no intention of resigning, despite internal criticism and calls for his removal following the government’s fall.

“Resigning would be a betrayal of all those people with whom we have spent a year trying to put BSP back on its feet,” he said.

Regarding a possible political project by President Rumen Radev, Zafirov said that while it is natural to seek common ground, the upcoming elections will position Radev as a competitor to BSP.

“Let us see the nature of the project he presents. In these elections, it is clear that he will be an opponent of BSP,” he concluded.