Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said on Monday (19 January) that he will resign from office, a move that has fuelled speculation he may form a political party ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections.
Speaking publicly, Radev said he would submit his resignation on Tuesday (20 January), bringing an early end to a presidency that was due to run until January 2027.
He accused Bulgaria’s political class of betraying public trust and said the country needed a new political contract, warning that democracy would not survive if left in the hands of what he described as corrupt figures and extremists.
Radev, who has expressed scepticism about Bulgaria's recent move to join the euro and has taken Kremlin-friendly positions on the war in Ukraine and on sanctions against Russia, was elected president in 2016 and again in 2021.
But he has long floated the possibility of forming his own party to bring stability and fight graft in one of the European Union's poorest and most corrupt countries.
“Today’s political class has betrayed Bulgarians’ hopes," he said in a speech. "We need a new public contract."
If the resignation is approved by the Constitutional Court, Radev will be replaced by Vice President Iliana Iotova, who would serve as interim head of state until presidential elections in November.
His decision comes amid a prolonged political crisis, with Bulgaria heading towards its eighth parliamentary election in four years following the collapse of the previous government last month.
Analysts say that while Radev has popular support, he is unlikely to win an outright majority if he forms a new party and runs in elections.
A nationwide poll published last week by Bulgarian consultancy Market Links said that 44% of respondents trusted Radev, versus 34% who did not.
Market Links Managing Director Dobromir Zhivkov said Radev would likely get somewhere between 20% and 35% of the votes in a parliamentary election and would have to seek a coalition partner, which could be the reformist PP-DB party.
PP-DB will likely be uncomfortable with Radev's Kremlin-friendly stance against sending military aid to the war effort in Ukraine, which he has described as "doomed". His scepticism about joining the euro, which Bulgaria did on 1 January, could also be a sticking point.
A Russian strike on a gas station in Kyiv has killed two people, the city's Mayor Vitali Klitschk...
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining...
Shanghai Enflame Technology, one of China’s leading artificial intelligence chipmakers and a domestic rival to Nvidia, surged more than 200 p...
Four people were killed, including a child, in Ukrainian strikes on the Russian port city of Novorossiysk overnight, according to the governor of the Krasnodar region. Ukraine's drone forces commander, Robert Brovdi, said Russian military ships were destroyed in the attacks.
Overnight Iranian strikes on an air base in Jordan damaged multiple U.S. aircraft and left one without a wing, American media reported. Meanwhile, explosions were heard across parts of southern Iran according to local media reports.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said on Wednesday they attacked two U.S. vessels and eight oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, calling the strikes a response to a U.S. attack on five Iranian tankers.
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian oil refinery in Siberia and a seaport in Dagestan in the past 24 hours, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He will meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday to discuss air defences for Ukraine over winter.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining a host of foreign dignitaries.
A Russian strike on a gas station in Kyiv has killed two people, the city's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a statement on Telegram. In Russia, online marketplace Ozon has suspended operations in Saratov, southwestern Russia, following a drone strike on a warehouse in the region.
Shanghai Enflame Technology, one of China’s leading artificial intelligence chipmakers and a domestic rival to Nvidia, surged more than 200 per cent on its market debut on Friday, highlighting strong investor demand for homegrown semiconductor companies.
Mexico and the U.S. are racing to secure a trade deal before the U.S. midterm elections in less than eight weeks, according to six sources familiar with the talks, with failed negotiations between Washington and Canada adding urgency.
A Texas judge ruled on Thursday that TikTok violated the state's consumer protection law by misleading users about how the platform filtered content for minors and the effectiveness of its Restricted Mode feature.
Sweden's centre-left opposition holds a narrow lead over the ruling right-wing bloc ahead of Sunday's parliamentary election, leaving Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson well placed for a return as prime minister.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment