AFTER Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) leader Sergei Stanishev announced that he was to be his party's candidate to be prime minister, the current one, Simeon Saxe-Coburg, presented the candidate lists of his party, the National Movement Simeon II (NMSII).
On April 12, the NMSII political council announced the leaders of the lists in the 25 electoral districts.
Lists will be headed by ministers Plamen Panayotov, Milen Velchev, Solomon Passi, Nikolai Vassilev, Nikolai Svinarov, Georgi Petkanov, Dolores Arsenova, Meglena Kuneva, Nina Chilova, Hristina Hristova, Vassil Ivanov and the most unpopular minister, Valentin Tserovski.
Lists will also be topped by current Speaker of Parliament Borislav Velikov and his predecessor Ognyan Gerdjikov, NMSII election team head Lydia Shuleva, NMSII parliamentary group floor leader Stanimir Ilchev, NMSII deputy leader Daniel Vulchev, NMSII secretary Vesselin Bliznakov, Interior Ministry chief secretary and most popular man in the country, Boiko Borissov, Sliven mayor and former football star, Yordan Lechkov, NMSII MPs Antonia Purvanova and Mincho Spassov, Oborishte Movement leader and NMSII MP Tosho Peikov, and the leader of the Party of Bulgarian Women and NMSII MP, Vessela Draganova.
As in the previous election in 2001, Saxe-Coburg's name does not appear in the MP candidate lists, but he expressed his intention to be prime minister again.
The fact that Borissov leads two lists - in Blagoevgrad and in Plovdiv region, comes as little surprise. Borissov has insisted for months that he did not want to be involved in politics unless the Prime Minister asked him to.
Saxe-Coburg did not commit himself when asked whether the announcement of the leaders of his party's lists meant that the NMSII would not have shared lists with its coalition partner, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF).
"Maybe, most likely" Saxe-Coburg said.
The other NMSII partners, Novoto Vreme, did not abandon their hopes of being included in the NMSII lists and said the NMSII, MRF and Novoto Vreme lists might be unified at the last moment.
The deputy leader of Novoto Vreme and current Energy Minister, Miroslav Sevlievski, however, said that Novoto Vreme was ready to stand alone in the elections, and were sure that they would pass the four per cent threshold for entry into Parliament.
Sevlievski said that Novoto Vreme was almost ready with its lists and that he was sure that the deputy leader of the party, former model Yuliana Doncheva, would beat Borissov in Plovdiv region.
Meanwhile, over the weekend of April 9 and 10, the BSP held its 45th congress in Plovdiv.
BSP leader Stanishev said that if the party achieved a decisive victory, he would take personal responsibility for the government of the country.
He said that the person at the head of the party is the natural candidate to lead the country's government.
He committed himself to offering a strong, responsible, professional and competent government team.
"This will be a team consisting of people of European orientation and capable of preparing the country for effective participation in the European Union," Stanishev said.
He said that the socialists would hold a referendum on Bulgaria's EU membership in which the people could express their will, just as had been done in all countries that recently joined the EU.
"As a party we have to work for membership of the EU, and for a positive outcome of the referendum," Stanishev said.
Meanwhile, a member of the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) Edvin Sugarev called on the leader of the Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB), Ivan Kostov, to resign from politics. Sugarev, speaking on April 10, said he was giving Kostov a week to quit politics. If Kostov did not do so, Sugarev would disclose information that would compromise him.
The UDF leadership said that Sugarev had expressed his personal opinion.
The DSB refused to comment.
Meanwhile, against expectations, the Government will not declassify communist-era dossiers ahead of the elections.
The move was expected after Saxe-Coburg said that the dossiers would be opened. Plans for such a move were regarded by observers as an apparent attempt to make political gains from disinterring the past of some of the governing coalition's opponents.
At a news conference on April 13, Interior Minister Georgi Petkanov said the files could not be opened now, because to do so would require a change in the law.