The results of the Bulgarian EP elections

The official results of the European elections have been finally announced. As for a Balkan country there were complaints for vote rigging, buying and selling of votes, vote recount was requested but turned down by the Central Electoral Commission that administers the elections.

If we try to be more positive, the turnout was higher - up good 10% from 28,9% in 2007 to 38,9% now which means 650 000 more people bothered to go vote. It was raining heavily back in 2007 and many people blamed that for the low turnout while this time the sun was shining. Of course the increased polarization of the Bulgarian society due to the upcoming parliamentary elections also contributed.

So, who won and who lost in the Bulgarian EP elections?

The populist GERB (EPP) retained the first place from two years ago, the socialists came second again (although by a bigger margin), while the party of the Turkish minority in Bulgaria DPS was again third. The nationalists of ATAKA were fourth. NDSV and the Blue coalition contested the fifth place with just 361 votes separating them on the finish. What does that mean in mandates?

The electoral formula used for the European elections in Bulgaria is that of the largest remainder (Hare-Niemeyer). The system does not have a bias in favor of the big parties so the distribution of mandates is seen as fair. As a largest party GERB got 5 mandates, BSP - 4, DPS - 3. The nationalists of ATAKA will have two representatives in the European parliament, NDSV also two and the Blue coalition - one. However if and when the Lisbon treaty comes into force the 18th Bulgarian mandate will go to the Blue coalition.


That's how the distribution looks like according to European party affiliation:

GERB and the Blue coalition are EPP members, BSP is the PES representative in Bulgaria, NDSV are part of the ALDE group, while ATAKA were briefly part of the nationalist "Identity, Tradition, Sovereignty" group in the EP before it dissolved. The Turkish minority party also claims to be liberal which is ridiculous when you think about it but they are also ALDE members.

The European elections in Bulgaria were unlucky to come just a month before the national ones so the debate never came really European and already on election night everybody was analyzing what the results mean in national perspective. However, there are a few positive tendencies. First of all, the turnout was substantially higher than in 2007. Secondly, the traditional center-right parties managed to achieve representation which was not the case two years ago so all the segments of Bulgarian society will have their say in Strasbourg. Thirdly, I'd like to think people know little bit more about the European Parliament does - it was the second such elections and much more European information campaigns targeted society. The higher turnout may be one of the signs that worked. Elections'2009 good bye, 2013 - here we come!

And the new President of the European Parliament is … or how a news was created

The Bulgarian elections for European Parliament will be held on 7th June - now the date is officially set. Bulgaria will elect 17 MEPs, one down from the 2007 mid-term elections. The electoral system is proportional with a barrier set at the so-called electoral quota which is 100%/17 (number of mandates)= 5,88% of the votes. Judging by the previous elections when just under 2 mln. people exercised their right to vote that would mean a party would need around 120, 000 votes to pass the threshold and get an MEP candidate elected.

120, 000 in a country of 7.5 mln. is a lot and it is not. It is a lot because people don’t show big interest in European elections and it is not because a good campaign with popular candidates can raise the public support needed. After all, 120, 000 is the size of an average neighbourhood in the capital Sofia ( 2 mln. inhabitants).

Probably led by similar considerations current Bulgarian MEPs and candidates are quite active in public discussions these days. Of course, the present representatives are keen on keeping their seat and the lower number of mandates for distribution will just make that task harder.

The discussion I visited this week was organized by the New Bulgarian University. The participants included the current MEPs Nickolay Mladenov (GERB) and Iliana Iotova (BSP) as well as MEP candidates Plamen Tsvetkov and Youseff Dakak (DSB), Atanas Shterev and Plamen Panayotov (BND). The discussion went in the usual constructive tone with the candidates trying to put focus on European, rather than national issues. One of the hot issues appeared to be the proposed ban on the import of seal products in the EU. The public as well as some of the candidates appeared to be quite informed on the topic and agreed on the need of such a ban.

As a blogger I felt I needed to ask a few questions that will spark a discussion. What personally concerned me (as a EU voter) was the de-facto permanent coalition between the two largest EP factions - EPP and PES which allows them to share the post of President and the vast share of commission seats in Parliament. So I asked the candidates how would they motivate me to vote for either of these if my vote would practically not make a difference.

Since the PES representative Mrs. Iotova had already left the discussion at that point I got an answer from the EPP group member Mr. Mladenov. He pointed the fact that EPP has elected the Parliament President with the help of the liberals in the past and promised that the new president will be an EPP representative and also … Polish. It remained unclear who will hold the presidency during the second 2,5 year term of the next parliament (probably again a PES representative) but at least a news was announced. The list of current Polish MEPs is here so pick your favorite. Just keep in mind he/she should be from the EPP

Jerzy Buzek - MEP from Civic Platform (member of the EPP), ex-prime minister of Poland, elected to the EP with the highest number of votes in the country.