site.btaUPDATED Large Protests Held in Major Bulgarian Cities against 2026 State Budget Bill, Clashes with Police in Sofia
Tens of thousands of citizens took to the streets in Sofia and major regional centres across Bulgaria on Monday to protest the adoption of the 2026 State Budget Bill. Protests were held in Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, Ruse, Pleven, Stara Zagora, Lovech, Veliko Tarnovo, Dobrich, Blagoevgrad, Sliven, Shumen and Yambol. Protesters in Sofia were heard chanting "Resignation!", apparently calling on the government to resign.
Late on Monday, the protest moved to GERB's and MRF-New Beginning's office buildings in central Sofia, where tensions escalated. Footage from major TV stations showed scenes of clashes between masked protesters and police officers, with burning garbage containers and a police van destroyed in the late hours of Monday. Police could be seen pepper-spraying protesters, many of whom were seen wearing masks at that point. More than 10 people have been detained, the Interior Ministry's Sofia Directorate told BTA, adding that one police officer has a broken leg, and another has been taken to hospital.
Earlier in the day, around 6 p.m., people began gathering in central Sofia at the square known as the “Power Triangle”, where the new National Assembly building is flanked by the Presidency and the Council of Ministers, to protest the adoption of the 2026 budget bills. The demonstration is organized by the Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria coalition. There was an increased police presence in the area, and law enforcement officers were conducting checks on some of the protesters. Road traffic in the area was blocked.
The protest was peaceful in its early hours. Groups of demonstrators were jumping and chanting: “Whoever doesn’t jump is fat”. Music was playing at the rally, and people were singing and dancing.
The words “Resignation and Jail” were projected in lights onto the facade of the Parliament building. At the protest, flags of Bulgaria and the European Union were waved. In front of the Parliament, two banners were displayed: “Generation Z is Coming” and “Young Bulgaria Without the Mafia”.
According to Nayo Titzin from the Continue the Change's press office, more than 50,000 citizens attended the protest. He said that reports had been received about people temporarily being held in the metro and called on the authorities to release them if the reports were accurate.
In front of the Council of Ministers building, a stage was set up, along with a screen that earlier showed drone footage. The images revealed that the area stretching from the Bulgarian National Bank, across the Power Triangle, all the way to the Statue of Sofia, was flooded with people.
“Temenuzhkas (ed. Violets) – in jail in winter,” red some of the placards, showing Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova and two figures with a pumpkin and a pig’s head instead of human heads, dressed in prison uniforms. Other signs listed some of the protesters’ demands on the budget – stopping bonus payments, halting the increase in pension contributions, and rejecting the higher dividend tax.
A projector displayed the word “Mafia” on the facade of the new National Assembly building, along with an image of a pig’s head, handcuffs, and the message “Come on Monday. Let’s stop the budget theft.” The screen mounted on a specially built stage for the rally was showing various videos about the state budget and the protest. Demonstrators began booing when videos were played featuring statements by Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning (MRF – New Beginning) Chair and Floor Leader Delyan Peevski, MRF – New Beginning Deputy Floor Leaders Bayram Bayram and Jordan Tzonev, and GERB-UDF Floor Leader and GERB Chair Boyko Borissov.
Organizers urged demonstrators to keep the protest peaceful. They warned that provocations were possible and called on anyone witnessing such acts to record them.
Some of the protesting citizens marched towards the headquarters of the MRF – New Beginning and GERB in Sofia. During the march, citizens chanted "Shishi out!" and sang: "When Peevski falls, I don’t want to be underneath, so he doesn’t fall on me." Attending the march towards the headquarters of GERB, former CC co-chair Kiril Petkov thanked the protesting citizens and warned that more protests will take place if needed.
Meanwhile, at the headquarters of MRF – New Beginning, around 10 p.m., single groups of protesting citizens started throwing plastic and glass bottles, firecrackers, stones, and other objects – both at the headquarters and at the police officers guarding it. Once the objects began being thrown at them, the police pushed the protesters back.
Furthermore, part of downtown Sofia was left without electricity, Electrohold Bulgaria told BTA. The outage affected circuits from the Rila substation, which supplies power to part of the city centre. The cause of the outage is yet to be determined.
In an earlier social media post, CC warned: “Football fans have gathered in front of the MRF headquarters. Stay safe! Avoid Vasil Levski Boulevard, where there is no electricity.”
Earlier in the day, Chief Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov, Director of the Sofia Directorate of Interior said that in the event of an escalation of tensions at the protest, the Sofia Municipality should immediately exercise its legal powers and, upon notification from the police, issue an order to terminate it.
Continue the Change leader Assen Vassilev warned Interior Minister Daniel Mitov that provocations are being organized for the protest at 6 p.m. on Monday in front of the National Assembly building, and that they must be prevented. He also called on Boyko Borissov to withdraw the 2026 budget so as not to “blow up the country”.
On November 26, there was a protest against the adoption of the 2026 State Budget Bill, which flooded the Power Triangle. The following morning, GERB Chair Boyko Borissov said that he had told Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov and Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova to withdraw the draft budget. Later, Zhelyazkov said that an attempt would be made to restore dialogue with trade unions and employers, and on Friday Petkova said that a new meeting of the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation was upcoming.
On Friday, Borissov outlined three possible scenarios for the state budget’s future. After the draft budget was not withdrawn, a confrontation unfolded in Parliament’s corridors between Borissov, CC Chair Assen Vassilev, and Yes, Bulgaria Co-Chair Ivaylo Mirchev, and Vassilev said that another protest would follow.
/MR/
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