Deputies rejected a GERB government with the first mandate

Parliament rejected a government with the first mandate of GERB. This happened after more than three hours of debates and with the votes of all parliamentary groups outside the party of Boyko Borisov and Delyan Peevski. From the DPS, however, 14 people's representatives listened to the call of the honorary chairman Ahmed Dogan, and not to the co-chairman of the movement Delyan Peevski, and also voted against the cabinet.

A total of 138 people's representatives did not support the proposal for Rosen Zhelyazkov to become the prime minister of a minority cabinet, issued by GERB and supported by DPS.

98 people's representatives were "for", two abstained. Two independent MPs voted against.

All deputies from GERB-SDS - 68, voted "for", and 30 people's representatives from DPS stood behind them. A total of 38 MPs from the PP-DB were against, and one abstained. From "Vazrazhdane" all 38 people's representatives were "against", as well as 17 from the BSP. The "against" button was also pressed by all 16 deputies from ITN, as well as the 13 people's representatives from Velichie, who did not split despite the internal split.

Thus, it did not come to a vote on the composition and structure of the government at all, after the prime minister-candidate was categorically rejected by the plenary hall.

Even if the 14 breakaways from DPS had supported the GERB government, the votes would not have been enough to pass, as all other political forces were monolithically "against".

Earlier during the debates, which focused more on past events than future ones, GERB leader Boyko Borisov himself showed that he did not believe that his cabinet proposal would pass. He urged them to stop voting and go seek forgiveness from the people.

In addition to the deputies, the President Rumen Radev, the Vice President Iliana Yotova, the Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev, as well as the representatives of the religious communities in the country, including the newly elected Patriarch Daniil, were present in the National Assembly.

"The composition of the government proposed by me has the main task of restoring effective governance in order to overcome at least the following three deficits - a deficit of trust and legitimacy, a deficit of goal setting and goal achievement, a deficit of law enforcement," Prime Minister nominee Rosen said before the vote Zhelyazkov.

The former Minister of Transport noted that during the last 3 years in Bulgaria, elections have been held every 6 months on average, which is why society no longer trusts politicians.

"The war between the institutions and the fragmentation of society into hard party cores, which are already chronically opposed, are on the way to transform the political crisis into a crisis of democracy. The path of unity is difficult, but we are obliged to walk it for the sake of the voters. I propose the formation of a government with a clear political mandate," Zhelyazkov added.

According to him, the composition of his cabinet is not made up of ordinary ministers, but of those who have been checked.

"Therefore, I undertake that if we receive trust, we and my colleagues will work diligently, honestly and honorably for Bulgaria to regain its self-confidence and respect. Each of us will be on the side of the truth, we will make amends, starting with ourselves first "We will catch up with modernization, digitalization, increasing labor productivity," Zhelyazkov emphasized.

After him, the former prime minister from the PP-DB Nikolay Denkov came to the parliamentary rostrum.

"Today we are being offered a government from GERB, supplemented by several ministers entrusted to Peevski. Why exactly have these ministers been chosen? Are they really offering us the same ministers, with the same schemes that caused the protests in 2020-2021," asked Denkov.

"This is not a government of the type "Return to the past". This is a government of the type "Forget about the future". There is no way we can support such a cabinet, because most of its priorities clearly divide us", the MP from PP-DB was categorical.

If the government proposed by GERB-SDS is elected today with the votes of the other political forces, we will highlight any attempt to misuse public funds, he said. We from the PP-DB heard you, the Bulgarian voters, said Nikolay Denkov, quoted by BTA.

The election results put us in the role of a strong, constructive and pro-European opposition, he pointed out. We will work hard to return your trust, because we are convinced that with your support we can achieve much more than GERB-SDS offers us today, Denkov addressed the Bulgarian citizens.

In the last three years, only we from the "Continuing the Change-Democratic Bulgaria" coalition managed to form regular governments. Both our governments were supported in the National Assembly after difficult negotiations on their priority tasks set out in a legislative and management program for which we received political support, and I thank those who provided it. After that, the same or part of them took us down, Nikolay Denkov commented. He noted that only after specifying the priorities, negotiations began on the names of the specific ministers to implement them. It is because of this approach that both PP-DB governments were successful, commented Denkov. In the short time of their existence, these governments moved Bulgaria towards the middle European economic levels as much as the previous governments of GERB in 12 years, he commented.

After his speech, Georgi Georgiev (GERB-SDS) took the floor for a reply. Mr. Denkov, I am addressing you, the former deputy minister of education in the GERB government, to you, Mr. Denkov, who resigned from the government yourself, no one deposed you, as part of the parliamentary group that you voted this resignation, he commented. Neither would there be a government if it weren't for your supporting parliamentary groups, nor would you be prime minister if it weren't for your supporting parliamentary groups, he commented. The only reform you have done is in your own parliamentary group with a two-thirds confidence meltdown, he noted.

In response, Nikolay Denkov commented that, as he had expected, "supports" were removed against the arguments he presented, related for example to economic indicators. I am the deputy minister who resigned when I was offered to participate in various schemes in which I did not want to participate, he stated. Denkov said that he resigned from the government he led, because that is what they agreed on, but GERB-SDS did not fulfill what they promised. We should have continued with your Prime Minister Maria Gabriel, he added.

During Nikolay Denkov's statement, GERB leader Boyko Borisov left the plenary hall. A little later, Delyan Peevski followed his example.

"Denkov had formed a government, he did it with my deputies, I can't listen to lies," Borisov said on his way out.

"We are second, but we will support the mandate of the first, we will take the second and decide what we will do with it," said the deputy chairman of the DPS parliamentary group Yordan Tsonev, quoted by BTA.

We from the DPS will act in a statesmanlike manner during the first, second, and third terms, he assured. Tsonev emphasized that the DPS will not hold talks with "Vazrazhdane", but they are ready for a dialogue with the others.

The responsibility lies with everyone - the first, the second political power and all the others, Tsonev emphasized. In his words, the actions of the PG of the DPS rest on political logic, on what they heard from the voters.

The first conclusion from these elections is that people have lowered their trust in the parties, in the political process, and hence in the state institutions to a critical minimum, Tsonev pointed out. Second - the people who voted or did not come out want the political process to be stabilized, a regular government to be elected, to have a stable majority in the National Assembly, because the government is not an end in itself, he added. And he recalled that at the consultations with the president, they said that they supported the mandate of the winner of the elections.

What is the outcome if we do not form a government - the participation of Bulgarian citizens in the political process will decrease even more and this cycle of declining trust and endless elections cannot be solved in any other way, emphasized Tsonev.

The DPS will act statesmanically in the first, second and third elections, said the representative of the DPS.

The decision we have to make today is not to support this government, Kostadin Kostadinov, the leader of "Vazrazhdane", said from the parliamentary rostrum.

Kostadinov pointed out that the main question is "can we find a general majority that excludes DPS".

He explained that there is nothing wrong with the possibility of going to new elections. The best thing about democracy is the possibility of the right to choose, said Kostadinov. In his words, the series of elections is not a crisis, but a "cleansing process" in which old addictions sink and die. The big question is whether we will want to separate them from the body of the Bulgarian state, he added, quoted by BTA.

Regarding Yordan Tsonev's statement that Bulgaria has chosen the Western model, I do not remember that there have been referendums or elections for models in Bulgaria. In Bulgaria, there was one big change that occurred in 1989, and it was that we became a democratic country from a totalitarian one. Democratic countries are not divided into less and more democratic, they are not divided into East and West. They are either democratic or they are not, commented Kostadinov. He asked what exactly the Western model is - a model of oligarchic governance, of corruption, of political slavery, of dependencies, of covert and not-so-covert links between organized crime and organized statehood. According to him, this is our country at the moment. Let's put an end to these clichés, which are disgusting and hateful to the vast majority of the Bulgarian people, insisted Kostadinov.

The leader of "Vazrazhdane" also commented on the statement of Rosen Zhelyazkov, who, in his words, pointed out that for the first time in the National Assembly a cabinet was presented without a secured political majority. In fact, it is not exactly so, noted Kostadinov and drew an analogy with the cabinet from 11 years ago, proposed by Plamen Oresharski. Then the pattern was much the same. Then, not as it is now the first and second political forces, but the second and third - BSP and DPS, without having a full majority, but relying on Volen Siderov and a "golden finger", they went and formed a government. This government crashed, together with it the Bulgarian state crashed. The party that partners with DPS - BSP - also suffered a disaster. Since then, this party has only been going downhill, Kostadinov reported.

I am addressing the representatives of GERB. I know and am confident that there is no national representative, no GERB voter who voted for a government that you will form and that is supported by the DPS. There is no voter of yours who supports you becoming a crutch of the DPS. The truth is that this will happen if this government is voted in, Kostadinov pointed out. There is no normal herbalist who wants you to become an accessory of Peevski and DPS, he added.

If you form a government today, you will suffer the fate of the BSP. Your voters will not forgive you, he added. You will change, apart from yourself, the future of Bulgaria, because DPS is not just a party, it is not a political organization, DPS is a political mafia, Kostadinov said.

Do you want to entrust the destiny of the Bulgarian people to these people, he asked.

Something else has been said, that we are witnessing a crisis of the status quo. Yes, it's a fact - it's a crisis, but we at "Vazrazhdane" don't see anything wrong, because the status quo is exactly this "western model" - the model of oligarchy, corruption, addictions, crime, dachshunds, poodles, and pussies, on the bars, he said.

Shortly after his declaration, Boyko Borisov came to the podium.

I suggest that we stop voting, thank the official cabinet for coming and go agitate, ask for forgiveness, said the GERB leader.

We will not support this cabinet - we will vote against it, said Toshko Yordanov from ITN.

Yordanov stated that getting out of the crisis in which the state is obviously in can only be done with an expert cabinet with a clear program and that this cabinet has broad parliamentary support. According to him, the cabinet cannot be dominated by one or another political force. There is no party with the necessary votes to dominate the rest, he added, quoted by BTA.

If the president gives the third mandate to "There is such a people", we will send an invitation to all political forces in this parliament for talks on an expert cabinet with a clear program, said Toshko Yordanov and pointed out that there it will be seen who and how works - for the state or for new elections.

Kiril Petkov (PP-DB) said that what he heard from Borisov would have been very constructive if he had asked for forgiveness for the fact that during all the years the judicial reform did not really come into force; that the services do not work for the Bulgarian people; that each point in the corruption index is equal to BGN 700 average salary of every Bulgarian; that he did not keep his agreement; that twice overthrew a regular government. The deputy apologized for the fact that the reforms were not put up for adoption in the first month of the previous cabinet. Petkov addressed the voters of the formation with the assurance that they will be permanent and constructive and no one will think that PP-DB can be a coalition partner without the reforms he mentioned.