site.btaPresident Radev to Launch Government Formation Consultations on Dec. 15

President Rumen Radev will begin consultations with the parliamentary groups in the National Assembly on Monday, December 15, as part of the process of forming a new regular government, the head of State’s press secretariat said on Friday.

The consultations will start at 10 a.m. on Monday with representatives of the largest parliamentary group, GERB-UDF. At 11:30 a.m., the President will meet with representatives of the Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria group.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov announced that the government was resigning. On Friday, the National Assembly unanimously accepted Zhelyazkov’s resignation with 227 votes in favour.

The government’s resignation came as Parliament was about to vote a no-confidence motion against the government submitted by Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB). In the wider picture, the country is swept by massive anti-government protests that were triggered by the cabinet's controversial budget plans but escalated into discontent against the government over corruption, injustice and failure in many government sectors.

Under the Bulgarian Constitution, when a government resigns, it does not stop functioning immediately. The Prime Minister submits the resignation of the Council of Ministers to the National Assembly, which adopts a formal resolution accepting it. However, the outgoing cabinet continues to perform its functions until a new Council of Ministers is elected.

The Constitution does not set a time limit after the government's resignation within which the President of the Republic must begin consultations with the parliamentary groups and hand out cabinet forming mandates to their prime ministers-designate, starting with the largest group. If the first two attempts fail, a third mandate goes to a parliamentary group of the President’s choosing. Should all three mandates be unsuccessful, the head of State is obliged to appoint a caretaker cabinet and schedule early parliamentary elections within two months. The National Assembly continues to function until a new legislature is elected and sworn in.

The pool of potential caretaker prime ministers from which the President may choose is limited to the Chair of the National Assembly, the Governor or Deputy Governor of the Bulgarian National Bank, the President or a Vice-President of the National Audit Office, and the National Ombudsman or a Deputy Ombudsman.