Bulgaria is a country located in south-east Europe and is bordered with five other countries which are Turkey, Greece, North Macedonia, Serbia and Romania, last week I talked about Vampires in the Paranormal Alphabet and Dracula mentioned in it is associated with Romania so check it out. Anyway, back to Bulgaria, the capital city of Sofia is located in the country’s central west near to the Serbian border. Bulgaria also has a coast along the Black Sea.
Bulgaria’s history has involved the area being part of the Roman Empire, then the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantine Empire, then it became its own Empire known as the First Bulgarian Empire before it was conquered again by the Byzantine Empire but it would go on to revolt and become the Second Bulgarian Empire before being conquered by the Ottoman Empire which it would be under for nearly 500 years as a vassal state called the Principality of Bulgaria.
The Russo-Turkish War from 1877 to 1878 led to Bulgaria becoming fully independent, they allied with Germany in both World Wars and was part of the Soviet-led Eastern bloc during the Cold War, later revolutions led to the fall of Communism in Bulgaria and led to multi-party democracy and the country as it stands today.
The CIA World Factbook estimates Bulgaria’s declining population will drop to 6,966,899 by July 2020, a low fertility and birth rate and emigration from Bulgaria are the top contributing factors. The official language is Bulgarian and the largest religion is Eastern Orthodox. The currency is the Bulgarian lev, 100 stotinki makes 1 lev.
Government Type
Bulgaria is a parliamentary representative democratic republic and it has two leaders the Prime Minister who is Head of Government and the President who is Head of State. There is also a unicameral legislature that makes up the legislative government. Multiple parties are allowed.
It is a unitary state and so there is no autonomy but it is possible to devolve government to a region or area.
Executive Government
As stated, the President is Head of State and represents the country abroad and has a number of executive powers at his disposal. The Prime Minister is Head of Government and so has a number of powers to control and lead governing policy and is responsible to the parliament.
The President and Vice-President are not members of the National Assembly and can also not engage in any other state, public or economic activity and they must also be independent of political parties.
The President has powers to schedule parliamentary elections and elections for the bodies of local self-government. Also sets the date for a national referendum that was passed by the National Assembly. Concludes international treaties. Promulgates law bills passed by the National Assembly, he can though choose to return a passed bill along with his motives to the National Assembly for further debate. If it is passed again, he must promulgate it within 7-days.
On a motion from the Council of Ministers the President can determine the borders of administrative territorial units and their centers. Also, on a motion from the Council of Ministers the President can appoint or remove heads of diplomatic and permanent ministers at international organisations. Can appoint and remove other state officials as established by law. Can award orders and medals.
Can grant, restore, relieve from or withdraw Bulgarian Citizenship as established by the constitution. Can grant asylum and exercise the right to pardon.
The President is also the Commander-in-Chief of the country’s armed forces. He can appoint and remove the higher command of the Armed Forces and shall bestow all higher military ranks on a motion from the Council of Ministers. The President presides over the Consultative National Security Council.
The President appoints the Chairperson of both the Supreme Court of Cassation, Supreme Administrative Court and also appoints the Prosecutor-General all on proposal of the Supreme Judicial Council. A repeated proposal cannot be rejected by the president. The chairpersons and Prosecutor-General serve 7-year terms and are not eligible for a second term.
The Chairpersons and Prosecutor-General can be removed by the President if one-fourth of the members of the National Assembly introduces a motion which is passed by two-thirds. The President can deny the removal but if passed again must remove the office-holder in question.
The President appoints one-third of the judges on the Constitutional Court for 9-year terms not eligible to be re-appointed or re-elected. The rest are elected by the National Assembly and a joint-sitting of the Court of Cassation and Supreme Court. Note that these elections/appointments are not done all at once but in a rotation quota every 3-years.
The President can proclaim a general or partial mobilization of forces on a motion from the Council of Ministers. Can also declare war due to attack against Bulgaria or to fulfill a national commitment and can also declare state of emergency or martial law, all of which needs to be endorsed by the National Assembly.
The President and Vice-President can have articles of impeachment brought against them by at least one quarter of all members of the National Assembly and requires a two-third vote to pass. If passed the Constitutional Court will try the President or Vice-President on the charges. If the President or Vice-President is convicted of High Treason or violation of the constitution by the Constitutional Court then the President’s or Vice-President’s prerogatives will be suspended.
After parliamentary elections the President will appoint the Prime Minister-designate who is nominated by the largest party, if they fail he will appoint the Prime Minister-designate of the 2nd largest party, if they fail to form a government then finally he will appoint the Prime Minister-designate of a minor party. If government can still not be formed then the President will appoint a caretaker government, dissolve the National Assembly and call fresh elections.
Some of the President’s powers/decrees require a counter-signature by the Prime Minister or a minister concerned.
The Prime Minister is Head of Government and heads the Council of Ministers which determines governing policy and is accountable to the National Assembly. The Prime Minister can remove and appoint deputy ministers. On a motion from the Prime Minister the National Assembly elects the Ministers of the Council of Ministers. Members of the Council of Ministers must suspend being members of the National Assembly.
Legislative Government
Legislative government is made up of a single unicameral parliament called the National Assembly, a single chamber with a set 240 elected members. The National Assembly introduces legislation and debates and votes to either reject or pass law bills, law bills can also be amended.
Parliament also passes the state budget and can establish taxes and determine the size of state taxes. They also schedule presidential elections, pass a resolution to hold a referendum, elects the Prime Minister and can remove the Prime Minister if confidence is lost and can also vote no-confidence on the Council of Ministers, which will also lead to the Prime Minister’s resignation. On the Prime Ministers motion the National Assembly can elect and remove members of the Council of Ministers. Can also create, transform and close down ministries on a motion from the Prime Minister. Can also elect and remove the Governor of the Bulgarian National Bank and other institutions determined by law.
The National Assembly also elects 11 of the 25 members of the Supreme Judicial Council for 5-year terms. (another 11 are elected by bodies of the judiciary). The Chairperson of the Court of Cassation, Chairperson of the Supreme Court and the Prosecutor-General are ex-officio members. The council is chaired by the Minister of Justice who does not have a vote in the council.
The National Assembly also elects one-third of the Constitutional Court judges for 9-year terms not eligible for re-election.
Can approve state loan agreements, resolve on the declaration of war and conclusion of peace. Approves any deployment or use of Bulgarian armed forces outside the country’s borders. Also, consents to foreign forces deploying within the country or crossing through. Gives consent to martial law or state of emergency proposed by the President or Council of Ministers on all or part of the country’s territory. Can also grant amnesty, establish official holidays and will hold hearings and receive the annual reports of the top courts. Also ratifies or denounces international treaties.
After the election of the parliament the president will convene it within a month, if he does not then one-fifth of members can convene it instead. After elections and when the parliament has been convened the members will eventually elect a Chairperson and Deputy Chairpersons.
The Chairperson represents the National Assembly and proposes agenda. They open, chair and close sessions of parliament. The Chairperson also signs acts passed by parliament and promulgates resolutions, declarations and addresses passed by parliament. The Chairperson also regulates debate, makes sure parliamentary rules are followed.
The Chairperson shall convene the National Assembly either at his own initiative, at the request of the President, at the request of at least one-fifth of members or at the request of the Council of Ministers.
Ad-hoc and standing committees are also elected. Ad-hoc committees can conduct investigations and enquiries. Any officials or citizens subpoenaed by a parliamentary committee will be obligated to testify and present any required documents. Standing committees aid the work of the National Assembly on different areas.
Electoral System
Presidential Elections are held every 5-years and the candidates win by getting one-half of the eligible votes, if no candidate reaches this then a 2nd round is held between the top two candidates which is won through simple majority.
Eligible candidates for president must be a natural-born Bulgarian citizen who is at least 40-years or older and also must be qualified for election to the National Assembly. Candidates must have also lived in the country for at least 5-years preceding the election.
The Vice-President is elected on the same ballot as the candidate they are running with.
One person can serve as President or Vice-President for the max of two terms (10-years).
Parliamentary elections are held every 4-years to elect the 240 members of the National Assembly.
The 240-members are elected from multi-seat constituencies using a proportional representation system where if a party or coalition gets at least 4% of the vote they are guaranteed to be represented in parliament.
Candidates for the National Assembly must have Bulgarian citizenship and hold no other citizenship, must be 21-years or older, not be under judicial interdiction and not be serving a prison sentence. Ministers must cease their terms of office as a Member of the Assembly and be substituted in a manner established by law.
The Prime Minister is designated by the largest party after parliamentary elections, this is known as the Prime Minister-designate and is appointed then by the President, the Prime Minister-designate is charged with forming a government, if they cannot then the President will appoint a Prime Minister-designate from the largest opposition party, if they are unable to do it then the President will appoint a Prime Minister-designate from a minor party, if they still cannot then the President will appoint a caretaker government and call fresh elections.
If a Prime Minister-designate is successful in forming a government then that designate will be elected fully as Prime Minister by the National Assembly.
To vote in elections a person must have Bulgarian citizenship and be at least 18-years-old. Voting is not mandatory.
Source
My source is from Bulgaria’s 1991 constitution with amendments up to 2007 so the information should be as accurate as possible but if you are using this information in a serious capacity it is always important to cross-check information as the possibility remains that I may have mis-interpreted something and of course the constitution can be amended/changed and so over time this post may become outdated.
The constitution can be changed at the request of the President or National Assembly, changes require a three-fourths majority of members of the National Assembly in three ballots to pass. A “Grand National Assembly” can also be elected to write a new constitution and amend certain articles of the constitution, passage in this way requires a two-thirds majority in several readings.
I got a few bits of information from the CIA World Factbook as well.
Next up will be Burkina Faso.
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