A coalition of Bulgarian parties agreed to form a government, led by two alternate prime ministers, tasked with rooting out corruption.
The center-right GERB party and the bipartisan anti-corruption coalition We Keep Changing and the Bulgarian Democratic Party (PP-DB) agreed on May 22 to form a government.
The coalition has set constitutional reform as its main objective in the first half of its term, with a particular focus on the judiciary in the context of Bulgaria’s national assessment which is witnessing high levels of corruption.
Nikolay Denkov (right) and Mariya Gabriel in Sofia on May 22. Photo: AFP
Under the agreement, which will last for the next year and a half, the post of Bulgarian prime minister will be occupied by the representative of the PP-DB, Nikolay Denkov, during the first nine months, while the representative of the GERB, Mariya Gabriel, will occupy the position of deputy. – Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs. . Nine months later, Denkov would trade places with Gabriel.
The Bulgarian coalition government has also been tasked with re-proposing online voting as part of an effort to tackle voter fraud. Bulgaria experienced years of political turmoil when it held five elections in two years.
The GERB party, led by former prime minister Borissov, won last month’s election with 26.5% of the vote. The PP-DB alliance is in second place, reaching 24.9%.
Mariya Gabriel, 44, was the European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth from December 2019 to May 2023. She was a Member of the European Parliament from 2009 to 2017.
Nikolai Denkov, 60, served as Minister of Education and Science from May 2021 to August 2022. He is also a physicist and chemist.
Ngoc Anh (according to Politico)
