MAYA MANOLOVA ELECTED AS NATIONAL OMBUDSMAN

Maya Manolova was elected as national ombudsman by Bulgaria’s Parliament on 30th of July.

182 MPs voted in favour of Maya Manolova and 82 MPs in support of the other candidate Konstatin Penchev.

The voting was by secret ballot.

The candidates for the post were two – the incumbent ombudsman, Konstantin Penchev, who was nominated by the Reformist Bloc and Maya Manolova, who was nominated by the centre-left Bulgarian Socialist Party.

In order to be elected, the new ombudsman needed to receive more than half of the votes cast by the MPs. A committee of nine MPs, including one MP from each parliamentary group and the independent member Ana Barakova, verified the correctness of the vote.

Before the secret ballot, the two candidates were presented by the parliamentary groups, which nominated them.

Korman Ismailov, Co-chair of the Reformist Bloc presented Konstantin Penchev and said he was a successful national ombudsman, highly committed to his work.He highlighted that during his term of office, Penchev used ballanced approach, achieved tangible results and contributed to making the institution recognizable and close to the community. Penchev worked for protection of the rights of vulnerable members of society and provided wide support to the NGOs, Ismailov added.

Mihail Mikov, chair of the Bulgarian Socialist Party presented the candidature of Maya Manolova. He said she was very active in protecting citizens’ rights. The parliamentary committee for cooperation with the civil society was set up at her initiative, Mihov added.

Maya Manolova will take office on 20th of October when the term of the incumbent ombudsman Konstantin Penchev expires.

Maya Manolova is a well-known political figure.She was born in the town of Kyustendil, South Bulgaria. Manolova graduated in history from the university in Moscow, Russia and in economics and law from the University for National and World Economy in Bulgaria. She started her political career as a district leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) in the town of Kyustendil. Manolova was an MP in four National Assemblies and a Deputy Chairperson of the 42nd National Assembly.