The biggest political party in Bulgaria’s ruling coalition GERB and this country’s biggest opposition party the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) start in January active preparations for the forthcoming elections for European Parliament, Dnevnik daily informs. At a national meeting on January 20 in Sofia the central leadership of GERB party will give instructions to the local structures in relation with the European elections in May and the local elections that will be held in the autumn of 2019. One week later, the National Palace of Culture hosts the Congress of the Bulgarian Socialist Party which will approve the party platforms for the forthcoming European elections and possible early Parliamentary elections. The most urgent task of the two biggest political parties in Bulgaria is to nominate candidates for MEPs. They will be nominated by the local political structures, but the central leadership of the parties (the Executive Committee of GERB and the Executive Bureau of BSP) will have the final say. European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society Mariya Gabriel is expected to head the candidate list of GERB at the forthcoming European elections. However, tension related to the names of the people who will lead the candidate list occurred in the Bulgarian Socialist Party. According to unofficial information, the President of the Party of European Socialist Sergei Stanishev will not head the candidate list for the EP elections unlike in the previous European elections and non-partisan candidates may head the candidate list of BSP instead.

On January 20 the central leadership of GERB party is expected to instruct the local party structures to make a review of its active members, to train people to become members of district and section electoral commissions and oppose actively to fake news with information about what has been really done by the government. GERB will undertake a civil dialogue initiative for the forthcoming EP elections under the motto Europe in Our Home to explain the citizens what has been done thanks to the European solidarity.

The national election headquarters of BSP has already developed a project for election platform for the European elections in which the socialist oppose to the two-speed Europe and insist that young people participate actively in shaping the future of Europe. The platform will be discussed by the National Council of the Bulgarian Socialist Party on January 12 (Saturday) and officially adopted at the congress on January 26. Another document named Vision for Bulgaria is expected to be voted during the Congress of the Bulgarian Socialist Party as well. It includes proposals of non-governmental organizations and citizens and is meant to serve as an election platform of this political party on future Parliamentary elections. According to the latest sociological survey of Alpha Research agency GERB will earn 37.2% of the votes and BSP will be supported by 34.3% of the Bulgarians at the forthcoming European elections in May. Independent analysts do not rule the possibility for early Parliamentary elections as well. However, they contend that this will depend on the results of the political parties at the EP elections.

Edited by: Stoimen Pavlov

English version: Kostadin Atanasov