site.btaPresident Radev Holds Consultations with TISP on Budget, Election Code, and Government Continuity

President Rumen Radev held consultations here on Wednesday with representatives of the There Is Such a People (TISP) party ahead of the mandate-granting procedure to form a new government, emphasizing that the outgoing government is constitutionally obliged to ensure continuity and stability until a caretaker cabinet takes office.

“I fully understand that, at the moment, the Bulgarian parliament is a far more interesting place than these consultations, so I truly appreciate that you are here,” Radev said. “You are in a complex position: as an outgoing government, you are constitutionally obliged to ensure continuity and stability until a caretaker government takes office, while at the same time thinking and working toward your next political position.”

The President asked TISP representatives whether they intend to reformat the government within the 51st National Assembly or whether early parliamentary elections are unavoidable. He also raised questions about the Election Code, including whether 100% machine voting with control receipt counting should be implemented, and whether a a budget extension should be adopted.

TISP Floor Leader Toshko Yordanov said that the party supported the “old” budget entering plenary discussion to make clear to all citizens who opposed it. “Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) have been avoiding responsibility, because a state without a budget could face serious problems,” he said, noting that large portions of social payments depend on the state budget. He added that the government-backed budget had also been supported by unions and employers, the major social groups expected to back it. “However, it was blocked by CC-DB, and today we wanted it to be clear who is opposed,” Yordanov said.

He emphasized that Parliament will vote only on the bill for the state budget extension and said it is not reasonable in the current political situation to seek a new government reconfiguration. According to Yordanov, the parliamentary deadlock stems from constitutional amendments, made by CC-DB and GERB, with the support of [Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) - New Beginning leader] Delyan Peevski and MRF, which TISP had twice challenged in the Constitutional Court. “We are in a situation where it simply rained down, and we adapted to it. CC-DB created the situation we are now in,” he said.

On the Election Code, Toshko Yordanov said that TISP had proposed changes to voting rules as soon as they entered Parliament. The amendments passed the first reading, went through committees, and were worked on in working groups, Yordanov recalled. He described the changes as reasonable and urged MPs to support the bill, which has broad consensus. According to him, there is no problem with renting machines with scanning devices; the real problem for him and for TISP are the so-called “dead souls” in the voter lists. 

Representing TISP in the meeting were Floor Leader Toshko Yordanov and MPs Stanislav Balabanov, Dragomir Petrov, Pavela Mitova, and Aleksandar Valchev. 

Earlier in the day, Radev met with representatives of BSP - United Left. 

The consultations are part of the constitutional process following the government’s resignation, as the president meets with all parliamentary groups before assigning mandates to form a new cabinet. 

On Tuesday, the President discussed the political situation in the country with representatives of Vazrazhdane and of MRF – New Beginning. On Monday (15 December), consultations with President Rumen Radev began, during which he met with GERB-UDF and CC-DB.