Bulgaria’s electoral commission faced with two warring MRF factions
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Loading... - Hartwin Stein
- 05 Sep 2024
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Bulgaria's Central Electoral Commission (CEC) is navigating a complex situation involving two factions of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), each claiming to be the legitimate representative of the party. The conflict arises as the country prepares for its early parliamentary elections on October 27.
The faction loyal to the MRF's founder, Ahmed Dogan, intends to run under the coalition name "MRF – Democracy Rights and Freedoms," while the faction aligned with Delyan Peevski plans to stand as "MRF – New Beginning." Bulgarian electoral law complicates the situation by prohibiting the use of the same name or abbreviation by different contestants in the same election.
Although Dogan's faction has announced the ouster of Peevski, both Peevski and Dogan loyalist Dzhevdet Chakurov remain registered as co-leaders of the MRF. This has led to a standoff, with the CEC deciding to accept registration applications from both factions simultaneously. However, the CEC has now instructed both groups that a party cannot be part of two coalitions in the same election and has given them until September 7 to prove that the MRF is not part of their intended coalitions.
This situation is further complicated by internal struggles within the Bulgarian Socialist Party over control of its candidate lists, adding to the CEC's challenges in managing the upcoming election process.
