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Democratic Bulgaria and Stand up! Thugs out! as potential coalition partners. On the other hand, Democratic Bulgaria has repeatedly said it will not enter in coalition with any party in the parliament. Even if Democratic Bulgaria agrees to enter
a coalition, without Gerb, the BSP or the DPS the new coalition would not have enough MPs, leaving Trifonov to either choose to lead a minority cabinet or go for an early election.
If There Are Such People fails to form a government, President Rumen Radev can pick another party to try to make a cabinet.
According to Teneo, in this third phase Gerb, the BSP and the DPS might decide to form a technocratic government in order to avoid another vote during the pandemic and to be able to receive the billions of euros aid from EU funds.
If this third attempt fails, Bulgaria has to hold another general election, which seems the most realistic scenario, Teneo said.
“This parliament cannot and should not form a government. The desire of the DPS and Borissov for a technocratic government should not be accepted. The sooner the new early election, not organised by Gerb, the better,” prominent blogger and Sofia city council member Yvo Bojkov commented.
From no coalition to everyone against Gerb
Within Bulgaria, voters, politicians and political analysts are divided in their opinions on whether Bulgaria’s next parliament should form a government or if an early election is the better option.
Borissov has clearly indicated he is willing to form any coalition in order to stay in power.
BSP leader Kornelia Ninova ruled out the possibility of uniting with Gerb but indicated that that the BSP is open to other coalition formations, aiming to oust Gerb from power.
Meanwhile, Democratic Bulgaria has clearly said it will
not enter into coalition with any of the parties that have participated in the outgoing parliament – Gerb, the BSP or the DPS – and one of its leaders, Hristo Ivanov, noted that the party will not discuss coalitions until it sees who will vote against a fourth Gerb government.
Ivanov’s close ally, Ivaylo Mirchev, clarified that Democratic Bulgaria sees no possibilities to participate in coalition in the new parliament and that early election seem the better option.
Stand up! Thugs out! said that any coalition against Borissov is acceptable as he must be removed from power as a start of the change in the country.
Key players stay silent
After their parties’ battering in the polls, both Borissov and Ninova were slow to comment on the result. Ninova eventually addressed the media on April 5, saying that the executive
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leadership of the BSP has resigned but she will remain the party’s leader. Meanwhile, neither the DPS nor – crucially – Trifonov have made any comment on their positions.
Trifonov, the former TV host and singer who at a stroke becomes one of Bulgaria’s most important politicians, said as the results came in that he has symptoms of coronavirus and has self-isolated, and declined to make any further statement on the course of action he will take. While he has said he
will not work with Gerb, he is seen as unpredictable and has praised Borissov in the past.
As Bulgarians are left wondering what government, if any, will result from the newly elected parliament, the Association of
“On election night, when everyone was expecting them to go out and take responsibility for the future of the country, the three of them chose to hide from the media”
European Journalists – Bulgaria strongly criticised Borissov, Ninova and Trifonov for failing to arrange press conferences after the first election results came out.
“On election night, when everyone was expecting them to go out and take responsibility for the future of the country, the three of them chose to hide from the media,” AEJ – Bulgaria commented.
Trifonov’s claim that he was self-isolating got little sympathy from the association. “[A]s a leader of the second-largest parliamentary party, Trifonov could have used the possibilities given by the new technologies and to speak with media and journalists or to delegate this to his deputies,” AEJ – Bulgaria said in its statement released on April 5.
“Hiding from journalists is not appropriate for responsible politicians and shows disrespect to their voters and to all Bulgarian citizens. It is vital for democracy for politicians to be available for questions of journalists,” AEJ – Bulgaria noted.
Borissov’s decision to comment on the election result on Face- book instead of giving a press conference was widely criticised, though expected as he has picked the same approach for a year.
His statement was widely mocked by critics and was dubbed the ‘swan’s song’ by political analyst Ivo Indzhev. “The epoch of the dumb ones and of the dumb decision of the chief of the dumb ones, Boyko Borissov. He looks less and less like a swan, but this victory is his swan song,” he wrote on his blog.