Political Reactions After President Iotova Nominates Andrey Gyurov as Caretaker Prime Minister

Political reactions were swift following President Iliana Iotova’s decision on February 11 to nominate Andrey Gyurov as caretaker prime minister.

The move prompted sharply differing responses across the political spectrum.

The 'We Continue the Change–Democratic Bulgaria' (WC-DB) alliance welcomed the nomination.

As for the composition of the cabinet, party representatives said this would be a matter for Andrey Gyurov to determine in consultation with President Iotova.

“The most important thing for us is to have fair elections, and we strongly believe that nominating Andrey Gyurov is a good step in that direction. If Mr Rashkov becomes interior minister, that would be a guarantee of fair elections,” said Asen Vassilev of the WCC-DB parliamentary group.

Asked whether the party was concerned that the caretaker government might be portrayed as belonging to WCC-DB, he replied: “The caretaker cabinet belongs to Bulgaria.”

The Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (ARF) also backed the President’s decision. The party said it expected the caretaker government to organise fair and transparent elections and explained why it believes Andrey Gyurov is a suitable choice for caretaker prime minister.

“We accept him as the most distanced option, with all the caveats we have heard, and we expect concrete action and tangible results,” said Hayri Sadakov, chair of the ARF parliamentary group.

“A step in the right direction” – this is how the Velichie party described the President’s decision.

“He is a counterpoint to the previous caretaker prime ministers, who were a continuation of this government,” said Ivelin Mihaylov, chair of the Velichie parliamentary group.

Asked about the possibility of Boyko Rashkov serving as Interior Minister, he added: “That would be the best option. We know that he has poor relations with Boyko Borissov, which is a counterpoint to the policy pursued so far.”

The BSP is so far refraining from making assessments, waiting to see the composition and actions of the caretaker government.

The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP–United Left) has so far refrained from making an assessment, saying it will wait to see the composition and actions of the caretaker government.

“We expect the nominated caretaker prime minister to present a competent and independent Council of Ministers, so that the main objective – namely fair elections – can be fulfilled. Based on the proposed cabinet line-up and subsequently on its actions, we will be able to say whether they have succeeded in their task,” said Natalia Kiselova, chair of the BSP–United Left parliamentary group.

The 'Vazrazhdane' party criticised Gyurov’s nomination, while also acknowledging what it sees as a positive aspect.

“We have extremely serious reservations about Mr Gyurov and are certain he will justify them one hundred per cent, because we expect to see a party-political cabinet of WCC-DB. On the other hand, it will not be a cabinet of Borissov and Peevski, who are currently governing,” said Kostadin Kostadinov, chair of 'Vazrazhdane' parliamentary group.

GERB said it had not formally expressed any preference to the President for the post. However, the party suggested that WCC-DB’s vocal promotion of Andrey Gyurov had influenced the outcome.

“We have a choice that was desired by WCC-DB. The cabinet, however, will be entirely within Ms Iotova’s prerogatives, because while the choice of caretaker prime minister may have been limited, the composition of the cabinet falls fully within her powers – whether to approve it or not,” said Denitsa Sacheva, deputy chair of the GERB-UDF parliamentary group.

MRF–New Beginning reiterated its position that a caretaker prime minister should be as politically independent as possible.

“Mr Gyurov was chair of the parliamentary group of We Continue the Change–Democratic Bulgaria and has never concealed his political affiliation. From this point on, responsibility under the Constitution lies entirely with the President of the Republic and the nominated caretaker prime minister. Let us also state the good news – no one will be able to say that Delyan Peevski, chair of the MRF, appointed the caretaker prime minister,” said Iskra Mihaylova, deputy chair of the MRF–New Beginning parliamentary group.

There Is Such a People (TISP) did not hold back in its criticism of Mr Gyurov’s nomination, also pointing to what it described as a legal issue surrounding his nomination.

“Did the former President, Radev, when saying that the government should step down and elections be called, have a prior agreement with the coalition of charlatans, who are now choosing their own man as prime minister, given that Gyurov was chair of the WCC-DB parliamentary group? The scale of political influence over the Presidency in this case is monstrous. We are heading towards unfair elections, controlled by a single political party,” said Toshko Yordanov, chair of TISP parliamentary group.

photos by BTA, BGNES

Former President Rumen Radev also commented on the nomination. In his view, President Iotova had made the optimal choice for caretaker prime minister within the framework of what he described as a Constitution “crippled” by the 'assemblage' government.

He said he expected Andrey Gyurov’s actions to meet Bulgarian citizens’ expectations for fair elections.

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The "assemblage" is a term often used to refer informally to the power-sharing cooperation between the two main political blocs in the Bulgarian government from June 2023 to March 2024: "We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria" (WCC-DB) and GERB-UDF. The term highlighted the nature of the arrangement as a potentially reluctant or temporary gathering of different political entities, rather than a traditional, cohesive coalition government. The "assemblage" fell apart before the agreed rotation of governance seats.