Reactions of the Political Parties Following the President’s Resignation

After the President announced his decision to resign, political reactions were quick to follow.

• Bulgaria's President Radev Announces Resignation

The political parties in the National Assembly were not surprised by President Rumen Radev’s decision. The largest of them, GERB–UDF, has so far remained silent, but only a few days earlier the party leader, Boyko Borissov, had launched sharp criticism at President Radev, accusing him of using the presidential institution to conduct an unfair political campaign and of constantly criticising the government.

The position of “We Continue the Change” – “Democratic Bulgaria” (WCC–DB) is that they will continue to work for fair elections, for dismantling the Borissov–Peevski model, and for ensuring that Bulgaria remains at the heart of Europe. They added that they expect President Radev to define himself precisely in relation to these benchmarks set out by WCC–DB.

Nadezhda Yordanova, Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Group of WCC–DB, said:
“Rumen Radev’s entry into the party-political arena in no way changes the priorities of our PP–DB coalition. We are and will continue to be a political force that works to dismantle the Borissov–Peevski model and the captured state, and we also stand for a strong Bulgaria in a strong Europe, on a firmly pro-European path.”

The leader of “Vazrazhdane”, Kostadin Kostadinov, published a post on Facebook in which he wrote that he sees similarities between parts of President Rumen Radev’s speech and the programme of “Vazrazhdane”. He added that he is eagerly looking forward to the election debates, where Radev will have to answer many questions from which, according to him, he can no longer hide as he has done until now.

At this stage, “MRF – New Beginning” have not commented on President Radev’s decision. In the past, however, the party’s leader, Delyan Peevski, has repeatedly called on Radev to enter the political arena so that they could meet there and measure their strength directly.

The position of Atanas Zafirov, leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), also came via Facebook. He wrote: “Welcome to Mr Rumen Radev on the parliamentary field,” adding that he believes this will help politics return to its essential core, namely the welfare of the people. Zafirov further added that BSP once again has a President and wished success to Iliana Iotova.

Radev’s move was also commented on by Kristian Vigenin, who wrote on social media:
“When it was darkest, the presidential institution remained shining like a lighthouse. I believe that together we can achieve what we then lacked the strength to accomplish.”

The leader of “There Is Such a People” (TISP), Slavi Trifonov, welcomed Rumen Radev on social media with the words “Welcome to the political arena in Bulgaria”. He noted that TISP is positioned as a right-wing, traditional and conservative party, and that its leading themes remain traditional Bulgarian values, the protection of Bulgarians in North Macedonia, and the cessation of illegal migration.

“At this stage, the ‘Alliance for Rights and Freedoms’ are refraining from comment.

Radostin Vassilev of Morality, Unity, Honour (MECh) described Radev’s resignation as an expected decision and saw in him a partner for a future political project.

Radostin Vassilev, leader of MECh, stated:
“Political life in Bulgaria needs like-minded people in the fight against a model that the President himself spoke about in his address – the model of corruption and captured institutions. It has been proven that with most of the actors in the current Parliament this model cannot be defeated.”

A hand of partnership was also extended by “Velichie”.

Ivelin Mihaylov, leader of “Velichie”, said:
“I am pleased because I see support in the struggle to change the status quo. So far, I do not see a single party with which we could work.”