Plenum of the Supreme Judicial Council Elected Magdalena Lazarova as Acting Chief Prosecutor

The Plenum of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) has appointed Magdalena Lazarova as acting Prosecutor General. Lazarova was the only candidate nominated for the post by the SJC’s Prosecutors’ College. The Plenum approved her appointment with 17 votes in favour and 2 against.

The decision will take effect on 23 October, for a six-month term.

The SJC’s deliberations lasted around two hours, with some magistrates calling for the vote to be postponed until the next meeting. Others questioned why the Minister of Justice was not present in the room.

Lazarova is currently Deputy Prosecutor General, a position she has held since last year, when Borislav Sarafov was at the head of the prosecution service.

Justice Minister Nikolay Naydenov had urged SJC members to nominate more than one candidate to ensure a competitive selection process. However, Naydenov himself did not put forward a nomination, citing the forthcoming election of a new SJC and his desire to avoid any suspicion of interference in the judiciary.

Lazarova was nominated because she is next in seniority after Vanya Stefanova, who is currently serving as acting Prosecutor General.

Nikolay Naydenov, Minister of Justice: “Should the decision on appointing an acting Prosecutor General have been kicked down the road at today’s Plenum? That is a decision for the Plenum, which I cannot comment on. I submitted my written position to the Plenum, and I also sent the Prosecutors’ College a proposal on how the procedure should have been conducted. That is where the minister’s powers end, because this is, after all, a separate branch of government.

“What message would it send if they chose the only candidate? It would continue a long-standing tradition of the prosecution service having just one candidate. There is nothing unexpected about that.”

Lazarova is due to take up the post on 23 October.