GERB Elects New Executive Commission Members, Sets Opposition Priorities

Tatiana Marinova, Nikoleta Vasileva

GERB’s National Assembly elects members of the party’s Executive Commission, Sofia, August 30, 2026 (BTA Photo/Milena Stoykova)

Sofia,

30.08.2026 14:08

(BTA)

GERB’s National Assembly elected on Sunday Radostin Tanev, the party’s regional coordinator in Stara Zagora, Dimitar Vuchev, regional coordinator in Sofia, and Stoyan Petkov, regional coordinator in Varna, as members of the party’s Executive Commission. The three were elected by 427 votes in favour, with none against or abstaining.

Tanev was nominated in writing by Stara Zagora Mayor Zhivko Todorov, a former member of the GERB Executive Commission. He said GERB needs to continue developing and show a new direction, arguing that renewal is necessary for the party’s long-term development. Tanev said trust is the strongest political capital but must be backed by work and action. He added that the party needs to demonstrate its strength, while its members must take responsibility for their words and work for the people.

Dimitar Vuchev was also nominated to the Executive Commission. In his address, he reviewed GERB’s development in recent years and what he described as the difficult periods the party has gone through. He said his first campaign was the 2019 local elections. He noted that difficult periods followed, including in 2022, while in 2024 and 2025 GERB had to take difficult decisions and participate in complicated coalition arrangements. He said the party nevertheless continued to develop, with growing interest and membership. As an example of efforts to attract and train new people, Vuchev cited GERB’s New Minds national academy initiative, launched at the initiative of party leader Boyko Borissov. According to Vuchev, 11 events have been held across the country under the initiative, involving nearly 300 people. He said some participants could go on to serve as municipal councillors, mayors or ministers and reach senior positions in the State.

Stoyan Petkov was the third nominee for the Executive Commission. He thanked Borissov and the party leadership for the confidence shown in younger members. Petkov said he hopes to use his administrative and professional experience to contribute at both local and national level. He highlighted the need for further development in Varna and the surrounding region, pointing to infrastructure projects, the industrial zone, and educational, cultural and social infrastructure as areas requiring work.

During the National Assembly, GERB Deputy Chair Tomislav Donchev said the party needs to examine what has happened in recent years, where it stands now and why it has reached the current political situation. Donchev said that during the past five years of political crisis, GERB had participated in two governments with political forces it had previously said it would not support. In his words, that had caused major political damage and was a key reason for the position in which GERB found itself several months ago.

He nevertheless described Bulgaria’s completion of major stages of European integration as a result of GERB’s "statesmanlike position". Donchev pointed to the country’s membership of the euro area and Schengen as "historic breakthroughs" whose benefits would be felt for years. "The hardest thing in politics is to do the right things," Donchev said, adding that a genuine politician must consider whether they will leave something behind for history even when decisions carry a political cost.

He said GERB’s first task from now on is to fulfil its responsibilities as an opposition party. That means criticizing when there are grounds to do so, pointing out mistakes and work left undone, and seeking to advance its own solutions. Another main task, he said, is to regain the trust of voters lost in recent years as a result of difficult political decisions. "Our most important task, however, is different. We must be able to draw, shape and present an alternative to the current government," Donchev said.

The GERB Deputy Chair identified the budget deficit, which he described as the largest in 30 years, and what he saw as weak policies in a number of sectors among the key problems. He urged party members and supporters not to hope for the Government to fail. "A failure by [Prime Minister Rumen] Radev would first and foremost mean a failure for Bulgaria," Donchev said.

/NF/