site.btaUPDATED Continue the Change Elects New Executive Council

Continue the Change (CC) Chair Assen Vassilev presented the new Executive Council of the party, elected at the General Assembly of Continue the Change, on Sunday.

Vassilev said the Executive Council is almost entirely renewed, with three returning members from the previous Council and ten new additions.

The newly elected Executive Council consists of former prime minister Nikolay Denkov, detained Varna mayor Blagomir Kotsev, and Blagoevgrad mayor Metodi Baykushev. Additional members are Vasil Pandov, Mihal Kambarev, Stoyu Stoev, Ivaylo Shotev, Bogdan Bogdanov, Venko Sabrutev, Vyara Todeva, Toni Stoycheva, and Tatyana Sultanova-Siveva.

Kiril Petkov will join the National Council of Continue the Change, according to Vassilev, as elections for the party’s leadership are ongoing. Vassilev also mentioned that Lena Borislavova is a candidate for the National Council and is expected to be elected.

Earlier on Sunday, Vassilev was unanimously elected Chair of Continue the Change. The party's General Assembly, focused on leadership elections, concludes on the same day.

Vassilev said there was no other candidate for the chair’s position. He said the party Statute provides for a deputy chair to be elected by the members of the Executive Council and approved by the National Council on the chair’s proposal. He added that an independent body is being created in the party, an Ethics Commission, which may investigate reports and take appropriate action.

A seat next to the newly elected members of the Executive Council was left vacant for the detained Varna mayor, with a sign reading “Blagomir Kotsev was supposed to sit here.”

“The prosecution has found nothing and is holding Blago Kotsev and the other political prisoners without any reason. And it is not only us saying this; Europe is already saying it, to the extent that the money of Bulgarian taxpayers is being stopped. Funds from Europe are being halted because the Bulgarian government allows itself to hold political prisoners,” Vassilev said.

In response to a question about the motion of no confidence in the Council of Ministers which Vazrazhdane plans to submit but lacks sufficient signatures for, Vassilev said CC will support in the plenary a no-confidence motion related to water shortages.

“We have a National Council decision to support it in the plenary. We will now have a new National Council elected today; it will convene and decide whether we would also provide signatures for submitting it,” he said.

Vassilev said the party adopted its platform on Saturday, allowing it to focus on five priority areas: competitive business, young families and incomes, education, healthcare, and justice and freedom. The party should adopt this approach as Bulgaria enters Schengen and the euro area on January 1, 2026.

According to Vassilev, Continue the Change is charting a clear path toward full European integration, aiming for a free and prosperous Bulgaria where citizens take pride in their history, enjoy stability today, and look to the future with confidence.