site.btaUPDATED Zhelyazkov Cabinet Survives Second No-Confidence Vote, Political Parties React

The Cabinet of Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov survived a no-confidence vote over corruption on Thursday. The vote on the motion was 71-131 with no abstentions.

A total of 202 MPs were present in the plenary hall. To pass, the motion needed the support of more than half of the 240-seat legislature.

The votes in favour came from GERB-UDF, Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) – New Beginning, BSP – United Left, and There Is Such a People (TISP). Vazrazhdane, MECh, Velichie, and Democracy, Rights and Freedoms (DRF) voted against the government. Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria did not vote. 

The motion was submitted by the Morality, Unity, Honour (MECh) parliamentary group, with backing from Velichie and Vazrazhdane, on April 10. This was the second no-confidence vote after previous motion, moved by Vazrazhdane over the Cabinet’s foreign policy, failed on April 3. 

The vote comes just days after the DRF announced they were leaving the power-sharing majority, making vital the informal support that another parliamentary group, Delyan Peevski's MRF-New Beginning (29 MPs), has been giving the governance so far.

Parliament Chair Nataliya Kiselova said that “pushing for a vote of no confidence over things that happened before this government was elected is an attempt to destabilize the National Assembly and obstruct its work”. 

GERB leader Boyko Borissov said that the Cabinet will continue to function as a minority government with 102 MPs, including GERB-UDF’s 66 MPs, BSP-United Left’s 19 MPs, and TISP’s 17 MPs. Borissov said that they would rely on thematic majorities in Parliament, adding that it was no coincidence he thanked CC-DB for not participating in the no-confidence vote. “You cannot declare support for the euro area and European development while working with Vazrazhdane, MECh and Velichie,” Borissov said. Interior Minister Daniel Mitov said that no support had been sought from MRF – New Beginning leader Delyan Peevski. “We cannot force anyone to support or not to support the Cabinet,” he added. 

Continue the Change co-leader Kiril Petkov said that “there is no way CC can be part of any majority controlled by Delyan Peevski”. He recalled that CC-DB plans to submit its own no-confidence motion once the date for Bulgaria’s entry into the euro area is announced. That motion will likely include some of the same arguments raised by MECh in their no-confidence motion on corruption. “The theatrics are over. Everyone now knows—Borissov and Peevski are together,” Petkov said.

Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov said that it became clear after Thursday’s vote that “there is a new majority, led by Delyan Peevski, who now controls the quorum”. “The only ones who support it are CC-DB and Peevski, which is indicative of their close symbiosis,” he added.  Shortly after the vote, Kostadinov said that Vazrazhdane will submit a third no-confidence motion against the Zhelyazkov Government after the Easter holidays, focusing on the Cabinet’s failures in energy and internal security. Kostadinov said that they will hold consultations with the opposition parties, including DRF, but will not seek support from CC-DB.

MRF – New Beginning leader Delyan Peevski said that while his party does not participate in the government, it does support the government in "doing good things for the people". He added that he will continue to back the government, as long as it continues to do its job. Asked about a potential vote of no confidence submitted by CC-DB after June, Peevski said that his party would never collaborate with CC-DB. 

BSP-United Left Floor Leader Dragomir Stoynev said that the “the news is that the populist and anti-European parties lack strength in Bulgaria, which is very good”. The three political forces which signed the Joint Governance Agreement - GERB-UDF, BSP-United Left and TISP - continue to work together, nothing has changed, Stoynev said. He added that it would have been good if CC-DB had backed the Cabinet so as to demonstrate this country's pro-European orientation together.

DRF made no comment after the no-confidence vote. At the request of DRF MP Hayri Sadakov, the motion was put to the vote for a second time, and one vote shifted to support the motion but did nothing to change the outcome.

TISP MP Pavela Mitova expressed relief that the governing coalition no longer have to deal with demands for posts and political protection after DRF’s decision to quit the majority. 

MECh leader Radostin Vasilev said that the outcome of the vote was not surprising, adding that “with a small change in the configuration, Delyan Peevski’s government survived”. “The new governing configuration will function only until it falls apart under various forms of pressure,” he added. Vasilev said that “the failure to manage internal security would be an excellent basis for the next no-confidence vote”, noting that MECh would seek support from CC-DB and other parliamentary groups for such a vote.

Velichie leader Ivelin Mihaylov also announced that his party is considering initiating another vote of no confidence in two weeks. He said that the current government has no future, adding that “when someone incapable and ill-intentioned is in power, they end up doing more harm than good”.