site.btaWrap-up: Leaders of Political Forces Vote in Snap General Elections, Make Statements

Leaders of parties and coalitions running in the October 2 early parliamentary elections in Bulgaria made statements after casting their ballots. They are listed in the order in which they appear on the ballot.

Right now Bulgaria needs security, Movement for Rights and Freedoms leader Mustafa Karadayi said after exercising his voting right on Sunday in a school in the southern town of Kardzhali. "We need to restore normalcy in Bulgaria, we need to resume dialogue," Karadayi said.

He also called for a restoration of democracy and for understanding the meaning of democracy. "In the 22nd year of the 21st century Bulgarian citizens should not be treated as criminals while the presumption of innocence is in place. We cannot treat part of Bulgarian citizens as criminals by default," he said.

"We should be aware of the meaning of dialogue and normalcy in politics, so that we can ensure stability, a stable government and security," Karadayi said.

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"Today the choice is very important. The choice is between going back to the years of transition and a new and changed Bulgaria," Kiril Petkov, Continue the Change co-chair and former Prime Minister, said after voting for new Parliament Sunday.

“I believe that all Bulgarians at this moment will make the choice for Bulgaria to move forward,” he said. 

Petkov said the next steps, besides the increase in the income of pensioners, is an increase in the average wage. “People hope that every young Bulgarian will choose Bulgaria as their home, that many Bulgarians will return from abroad, that we will have a prosperous and corruption-free country,” he added. 

Asked what parties Continue the Change sees as potential partners in a coalition government, he said he is seeking a coalition with the Bulgarian people.

I voted for a changed Bulgaria, where the transition ends and we finally move forward and become a normal European country, Continue the Change co-leader Assen Vassilev said after voting for new Parliament in his home town of Haskovo, southern Bulgaria.

“I call on all Bulgarians to vote, no matter for whom. This is the most important thing we can do today,” he said.

“Voting is important because this choice determines whether Bulgaria will return to the transition policy, which has kept people poor for 30 years, or whether it will move on to have a normal European policy and come a European country where taxes are used to the benefit of all citizens, not just for a bunch of companies and a bunch of politicians,” he added.     

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The Vazrazhdane party will not support any future government unless it is built on Vazrazhdane's mandate, party leader Kostadin Kostadinov said in the seaside city of Varna on Sunday after voting in the early parliamentary elections. He said that if Vazrazhdane wins the elections and gets to control a majority large enough to elect a one-party government, the cycle of early elections will be finally broken and the next vote will be four years later.

Kostadinov expects that pollsters will be surprised by the outcome of the elections. "After all, it doesn't matter what the pollsters say. The only thing that matters is what the Bulgarian people have to say," he argued.

"We can form a coalition only with the people I met today on my way to the polling station and back," Kostadinov said. He sees two possible paths for Bulgaria after the elections. The country could radically change its road of development and thus get a chance to survive. The other option is "God save Bulgaria".

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If the Bulgarian Rise party shares in the negotiations for forming the next government, the red lines which it will recognize will be the national interests, party leader Stefan Yanev told journalists on Sunday after exercising his voting right in a voting section housed in a Sofia school.

Yanev argued: "Bulgaria's national interests can be grouped into three main policy pillars: security, justice and prosperity."

He expects "the maximum result" from the elections. He advised people against paying too much attention to the suggestions that voter turnout will be low, and asked them to go to the polls. "Don't put off thinking and acting until tomorrow," Yanev said.

Asked what he had voted for, Yanev said he had voted for Bulgaria's future.

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According to Maya Manolova, leader of the Rise Up Bulgaria party, Sunday's elections are a kind of referendum on "for" or "against" the war. "As a woman, a mother and a former ombudsman, I voted for a peaceful Bulgaria, which is my cause," Manolova said, casting her ballot in Sofia.

She urged: "My friends, you are voting for your children and your homes today. You should be aware of the stakes. I ask you to go to the polls and vote for a just government that takes care of the people, not the elites, a government which will cut your bills and raise your incomes and pensions. Do not believe the paid sociologists, it is all up to you, not them! Vote!"

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Speaking after casting his ballot here in the early general elections on Sunday, Lyubomir Karimanski of There Is Such a People (TISP) said that he voted for honor, integrity and responsibility and no lies in the future parliament. 

"I see TISP's role in the next parliament with expertise, high-quality work, with which we can truly get rid of the double standard when all norms are violated," he said. According to him, people must go out and vote for Bulgaria's future, for the children and for ending impoverishment. He called for a nationally responsible behavior, adding that the future parliament's most urgent task will be to categorize the poor and vulnerable groups in within the current budget. 

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After voting in Sofia in Sunday's snap parliamentary elections, GERB leader Boyko Borissov called on his fellow politicians to show reason after the elections. The country should not be allowed to enter into a spiral of elections, he said. Given the war, Bulgaria will need to position itself clearly in the coming months, while entering the eurozone will the the main task. 

Asked whether he expects a government to be formed after the elections, Borissov compared it to asking football teams whether they will partake in a national championship, adding that the political parties must reach an understanding, form a cabinet around the main pressing issues, such as energy, the eurozone, judicial reform. 

He said his party has many options to help the State, adding that he has overcome his ego a long time ago. "I can promise you that there will be no revenge," he said. 

It will take compromises to put together the next government, Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) leader Rumen Hristov said on Sunday after voting in the early parliamentary elections in a Sofia school. UDF is one of the two partners in the GERB-UDF coalition.

"The question is whether the pro-European and pro-Euro-Atlantic forces will bring themselves to sit at the same table. I hope there will be a government. That is what Bulgaria needs," Hristov said.

He said he voted for a government which can ensure a warm and peaceful winter. A government which can contain prices, guarantee the incomes of Bulgarian citizens and carry on with the reforms, because Bulgaria needs them. Last but not least: the country's orientation. It is definitely pro-European. "We are strong in times of crisis," Hristov asserted.

He expressed hope that turnover will be higher than last year. "Everyone determines their own future with their vote," Hristov said.

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Bulgaria needs a bold reformist government, Democratic Bulgaria co-leader Hristo Ivanov said in a voting section in Sofia after casting his ballot in Sunday's snap elections.

Ivanov said the next government should be able to inspire the nation to make a leap forward. "This is perfectly feasible, regardless of how complicated the situation may seem," he said. "It is the complicated situation that can drive Bulgaria to make a leap forward in its development."

"We can be in a much better situation in a couple of years, we should just keep focused on the top priorities." According to Ivanov, the politicians should show responsibility and consistency.

"I do not think that a reformist government is possible without Democratic Bulgaria," he said.

He urged people to exercise their right to vote, so they will not have to hold elections again soon.

I voted for a sensible governance of Bulgaria because I am convinced that the country can come out much stronger from all the global crises, Vladislav Panev, co-leader of the Green Movement which is one of the partners in the Democratic Bulgaria coalition, said after voting for new Parliament Sunday.

Panev expects the elections to be followed by difficult talks on government formation. He expressed hope that the results of the Sunday vote will make Democratic Bulgaria an indispensable factor in the formation of a new government. 

He believes the probability of forming a new government is 50-50. 

Panev does not think new elections in three months' time will produce dramatically different results.

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After casting her ballot in Sofia during Sunday's snap elections, Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) leader Kornelia Ninova said she voted for "security and peace in every Bulgarian home, for a stable government which can promptly create a strong socio-economic shield against the crisis, for higher incomes and economic development guaranteeing Bulgaria's prosperity".

"The people should be aware that they will not be abandoned in these tough crises, the government will be there as a partner to help them. I voted for order and rules, for laws that apply equally to all, against privilege and for justice," Ninova said.

She expects BSP to share in the next government. "It would not be easy without a strong socially-sensitive party in these hard moments," she said, adding that they have already prepared 10 measures for the first 100 days of the new government to contain inflation and raise incomes.