site.btaMedia Review: April 30

POLITICS

On the day of the inaugural sitting of the National Assembly, media outlets feature comments from politicians and analysts outlining expectations and highlighting the most urgent tasks facing the newly elected MPs.

Vladimir Nikolov MP of Progressive Bulgaria, the largest group with 131 seats out of 240, said it will work to restore trust in the National Assembly, since it is "absolutely unacceptable" for Parliament to have only 8% public approval. Continue the Change leader Assen Vassilev identified the immediate election of members of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and the adoption of a broad package addressing economic problems and inflation as the top priorities.

More than half of the MPs (54%) are entering Parliament for the first time, with almost all of them from Progressive Bulgaria. At the other end of the spectrum, Movement for Rights and Freedoms MP Dzhevdet Chakarov is starting his 14th term. The most common professional backgrounds among MPs are economists, lawyers, entrepreneurs and engineers, who make up about half of the MPs, alongside 15 doctors and a number of former state and municipal administration employees.

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Interviewed by 24 Chasa, media expert Georgi Lozanov, Editor-in-Chief of BTA's LIK magazine, says the April 19 elections showed that voters had finally lost patience, giving Rumen Radev a chance to open a new chapter in history. This carries two risks: first, that the promised new chapter may not actually be new, as illustrated by Boyko Borissov, whose 2009 majority did not dismantle the existing power model but eventually became associated with it; second, that concentrated power could lead Radev to govern in an increasingly authoritarian way, potentially ushering in an age of autocrats. Talking about his expectations, Lozanov says he is interested in three things: whether judicial reform will be implemented quickly and with clear safeguards for the separation of powers, including limits on entrenched influence; whether Parliament will assert its constitutional role as the supreme authority or whether the prime minister will dominate executive power as has often happened; and whether the large parliamentary group of Progressive Bulgaria will remain a unified bloc or distinct individual political figures and centres of authority will emerge within it.

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Assoc. Prof. Nikolay Dimitrov, a social psychologist, commented on Bulgarian National Radio that overly high expectations from Progressive Bulgaria can lead to disappointment, as voters often hear what they want to hear and expect it to be implemented. Issues like returning to the Bulgarian lev or a shift towards Russia were never actually part of the party's campaign, but may still be expected by some Progressive Bulgaria supporters. The resulting fragmented expectations within a strongly supported political force will likely produce waves of disillusionment. Dimitrov also said that if campaign promises were implemented too quickly, this could signal political pressure from specific groups rather than stable governance. In his view, Radev is ready to head the government.

Entering Parliament on Thursday, Radev himself said he was very likely to be prime minister and expressed a hope that the government would be formed by mid-May.

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The news media carry commentaries on the decision by Continue the Change (CC) to form a separate parliamentary group, rather than staying together with Democratic Bulgaria (DB). As a result, although five entities crossed the 4% electoral threshold, there will be six groups in Parliament. The CC-DB coalition emerged as the third-largest force in the April 19 elections.

Trud quotes Democratic Bulgaria MPs Ivaylo Mirchev and Bozhidar Bozhanov as saying they had been strongly in favour of unity, whereas the initiative for two parliamentary groups came from CC. Nevertheless, Mirchev and Bozhanov said that nominating a joint presidential candidate is the only viable option for CC and DB.

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Trud News Editor-in-Chief Petyo Blaskov commented on the split, suggesting that hopes for political advantage rather than principle may have prompted this move. Interviewed by Bulgaria on Air, he criticized the idea expressed by Ivaylo Mirchev that unity is needed to oppose a "concentration of power" in Progressive Bulgaria. Blaskov called it "illogical" to frame opposition to a party backed by around 1.3 million voters in that way.

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In Trud, election expert Mihail Konstantinov argues that even large sums of money have limited impact on vote buying in Bulgaria. According to Interior Ministry data, EUR 1 million intended for vote buying has been confiscated, although whether the entire amount will be recognized by the court as such remains uncertain. Using a rough estimate of EUR 100 per vote, EUR 1 million would translate into fewer votes than are needed for one seat (around 11,000 votes per MP). If the money is spread across multiple parties, as is often the case, its effect becomes even smaller, potentially not enough to secure even a single seat.

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The Capital weekly has several articles on the parliamentary elections, analyzing the outlook for the party with an absolute majority in Parliament, the way Roma communities voted, and the expected first steps of a government of Rumen Radev's Progressive Bulgaria.

Maria Popova, Assoc. Prof. of Political Science at McGill University and Scientific Director of the Jean Monnet Centre Montreal, analyses the role Progressive Bulgaria could play in Bulgarian politics. The party lacks clearly defined ideological positions and prominent figures besides Radev, which raises some concerns. Still, the large majority he commands may help the country move out of a cycle of political instability. In domestic policy, Popova sees risks of expanded Russian "soft power" influence in the form of more Russia-focused cultural events, increased Russian language study in schools, and even the adoption of previously blocked laws such as a foreign agents act.

Velina Gospodinova analyses the Roma vote, saying that in many Roma voting sections, traditionally considered strongholds of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) and GERB, a significant share of the vote has now shifted to Progressive Bulgaria.

Polina Paunova looks at the beginning of what politicians and media refer to as the "Borissov-Peevski model". The journalist traces its roots back to mid-2013, when Delyan Peevski was forced to resign as head of the State Agency for National Security amid massive protests. She says this is the first time in 13 years that the established political model based on cooperation between GERB and MRF could be dismantled. This is possible because a Progressive Bulgaria government holds a full parliamentary majority and could seek support from Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria to elect a new SJC, requiring 160 votes. This would significantly reduce the influence of GERB leader Boyko Borisov and MRF leader Delyan Peevski over the judiciary. While the election of a new SJC and revisions of the Judicial System Act will take months, a decision by Progressive Bulgaria to remove the security protection of Borissov and Peevski would be the first real test for the party, the journalist says.

ECONOMY

Interviewed by Bulgarian National Television, Fiscal Council Chair Simeon Djankov called for urgent anti-inflationary policies. He was commenting on flash estimates of the National Statistical Institute which put year-on-year inflation in April at 7.1%. Djankov suggested stabilizing wages rather than cutting them, in order to break the cycle of inflation-driven pay rises. He argued for abolishing automatic wage indexation across the entire public administration, claiming it fuels inflation by repeatedly raising salaries in response to price increases. He also called for rapid administrative reforms, including reducing the number of ministers and deputy prime ministers and gradually shrinking the size of the public administration, saying these are quick measures a new government could implement within a month.

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In a bTV interview, financial expert Levon Hampartzoumian said inflation can be tackled through higher productivity, stronger competition and effective regulatory oversight, particularly against cartels and artificial price increases. He stressed the need for competent institutions, warning that they are often misused for corporate or political battles. He also pointed to market concentration, such as a few players controlling much of dairy production in Bulgaria, as a factor that curbs competition, limits consumer choice and enables high prices.

COPYRIGHT PROTECTION: CAPITAL WEEKLY

The cover package of Capital Weekly, authored by Magdalena Tsvetanova and Petar Tashkov, focuses on "The New Wave of Piracy". Despite the convenience offered by streaming platforms like Netflix and HBO, data point to a resurgence in online piracy. Nearly 56% of illegal traffic in 2024 was directed at films and TV, while piracy of books, comics, manga and other literature is also rising sharply. Price increases, the introduction of ads, declining quality and limits on the number of devices are pushing some users away from paid services. As streaming services have become more expensive and more fragmented, subscription numbers keep rising across multiple platforms, while visits to unlicensed sites have not significantly declined. Platforms like HBO have doubled prices in Bulgaria since 2021, alongside added paywalls for features like higher resolution and premium audio. Combined with global pricing models that often ignore local economic conditions, this makes legal access feel increasingly expensive for users, according to data analytics company MUSO. Also, as more streaming services adopt geo-blocking practices, restricted availability has become another driver of the new wave of piracy.

An analysis of Spotify says its policies, such as demonetizing tracks under 1,000 streams, tend to push niche artists to the margins. Its reliance on playlist-driven discovery also works against less well-known musicians, making it harder for them to gain visibility and consistent earnings. After changes in Spotify's rules, around 88% of songs on that streaming platform no longer generate any revenue for their creators.

Another article looks at major tech companies and start-ups such as Meta, OpenAI and Anthropic, which have faced lawsuits in recent years, alleging they used large amounts of copyrighted material to train AI models. Some accusations also involve direct use of pirated content. A key debate is whether the use of copyrighted material by those companies should be protected under US fair use legislation. 

FOREIGN POLICY

Trud has a story headlined "Zakharova Accuses Turkiye and Bulgaria of Contributing to Damage in the Black Sea". On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova commented on a Ukrainian drone attack on an oil refinery in the Russian town of Tuapse, on the northeast shore of the Black Sea. The daily quotes the diplomat as saying that NATO Member States along the Black Sea coast should collectively share responsibility for the Alliance's decision to arm Volodymyr Zelenskyy's regime. "By their political acts of support, funding, arms supplies, and information assistance, they are contributing to an environmental blow being struck against the Black Sea. Does anyone in Bulgaria and Turkiye give any thought to this?" Zakharova asked.

MEDIA FREEDOM

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has released its 25th World Press Freedom Index, segabg.com reports. For the first time in the Index's 25-year history, more than half the world's countries now fall into the "difficult" or "very serious" categories for press freedom. Bulgaria has dropped one place in the ranking compared to 2025, moving to 71st out of 180 countries. Within the EU, only Hungary (74th) and Greece (86th) rank lower.

SOCIETY

An opinion piece in Trud by Stefan Kyuchukov says 2025 data of the National Statistical Institute show that while more immigrants are arriving in Bulgaria and more Bulgarians are returning than leaving, the population continues to decline due to low birth rates. The number of babies born in a year decreased by 3,187, or 6%. Other data causing concern are that the average age in Bulgaria has risen to 45.4 years, and people aged over 65 account for 24.3% of the population.

Trud frontpages a story citing Energy Minister Traicho Traikov as saying that an inspection of the former Central Isotope Storage Facility in Sofia's Malinova Dolina residential district found that radiation levels are 10 to 70 times above normal, a long-standing condition that is not considered dangerous as long as the fenced and signposted area is not entered. The solution proposed for the issue is the removal of contaminated soil.