The handing of the second cabinet-forming mandate by President Rumen Radev to the prime minister designate of the second largest parliamentary group, Continue the Change (CC) - Democratic Bulgaria (DB) (CC-DB), Academician Nikolay Denkov, drew reactions from political parties and their leaders. Most reacted to Radev's speech upon handing Denkov the mandate.
Radev said that the second mandate had already been discredited. He also said that as President and Commander-in-Chief, he is directly committed to national security and called to defend the Bulgarian state. "I would like to state here that it is precisely because of this that it is inappropriate on my part to hand you a mandate and to entrust the fate of Bulgaria to the leaders of your party after the leaked recording and the subsequent public confessions for torpedoing Bulgarian sovereignty", the head of State told Denkov.
GERB-UDF MP Delyan Dobrev wrote on his Facebook page: "Continue the Change do not have morals for a mandate. If they have a bit of dignity left, they should leave politics immediately."
Continue the Change co-leader Assen Vassilev wrote on Facebook that with the way the President handed the second government-forming mandate, “it became clear what the stakes are: dictatorship or parliamentary republic”. “The choice (for) now lies in the hands of Parliament,” the post reads.
Democratic Bulgaria co-leader Atanas Atanassov said in a Facebook post: “Article 1 of the Constitution reads that Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic, and we are fighting for a regular government appointed by Parliament. The President can present his positions. Perhaps in this long period of time, during which the State was governed by a caretaker cabinet, he developed a taste for power. We believe that the way the heads of Bulgarian services are appointed should be changed. It is the Council of Ministers who is responsible for the security and public order, and in that sense they should not be appointed by the President”.
Bulgarian Socialist Party leader Korneliya Ninova wrote on Facebook, addressing President Radev: "You are the root cause for the problems in this country and cannot be part of their solution. The President has the right to criticize CC-DB about part of the leaked conversations, which are shocking, but conveniently omits that part of them which concern him directly. It emerges from the recording that CC and Mr Radev had 'tricked' the elections, that the whole State machinery has worked for them, that if the people were left to vote freely, they would have won between 7 and 10% [of the votes]. Mr President stressed today that he was duty bound to safeguard national security and the Constitution. Election fraud is a gross encroachment on national security. Kiril Petkov became minister [of economy in Stefan Yanev's first caretaker cabinet in 2021] in violation of the Constitution and with the President's protection and amnesty. Therefore, Mr Radev, you can no longer pass moral judgment."
There Is Such a People leader Slavi Trifonov said in a Facebook post: "The next step should be a third mandate or new elections. Minutes ago we witnessed the most humiliating handing of a cabinet-handing mandate in Bulgaria's modern history. The Constitution simply obliged the President to mandate Nikolay Denkov. In reality, CC do not deserve this mandate. Denkov must return the mandate unfulfilled. If there is any justice in this country, CC co-chairs Kiril Petkov and Assen Vassilev must be arrested for high treason and held criminally liable [in connection with allegations contained in a recording of a CC National Council meeting made public by MP Radostin Vasilev]. In addition to the recording, Assen Vassilev has confessed twice that he stands behind every word he said there. But there is always hope for justice."
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