More instability
Eastern approaches 2018-02-27
Summary:
AFTER 18 months of political turbulence, which saw four governments fall, the last thing Bulgaria needed was another inconclusive election. And yet yesterday’s snap parliamentary poll produced a highly fragmented parliament that will do little to address the myriad problems of the European Union’s poorest member state.
There was one clear winner: the centre-right GERB party won about 33% of the vote, according to preliminary results, more than twice as many as the Socialists, their main opponents. The Turkish minority party, DPS, which has become a fixture in Bulgaria’s post-communist political life, followed a close third, with some 15% of the votes. But for GERB, the party of the former prime minister, Boiko Borisov (pictured), its victory may prove bitter-sweet. Voters sent a record eight parties to parliament making the formation of a stable governing coalition a nearly impossible feat.
The election underscored the widespread disillusionment of Bulgarians with their political establishment. Voter turnout at about 50% was the lowest in the quarter of a century since the...Continue reading