Zafirov resigns as leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party

Close to a year after being elected to the post, Atanas Zafirov announced on February 7 his resignation as leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP).

Zafirov made the announcement on the first day of the BSP’s two-day congress, being held against the backdrop of Bulgaria heading to its latest early parliamentary elections.

The government in which the BSP is a minority partner and in which Zafirov is Deputy Prime Minister resigned in December and nothing came of the process of the head of state offering mandates to seek to form a new government.

He told the congress that his decision to resign as BSP leader was dictated by the desire not to deepen internal divisions and to provide an opportunity for a new beginning in the party.

Zafirov took stock of the state of the BSP in recent years, recalling the severe intra-party conflicts, electoral losses and declining support among voters.

He said that the party has failed to formulate a clear vision for economic development and modern social policy in the context of dynamic global changes.

He told the congress that over the past year, the leadership has managed to stabilise the party’s financial situation, prevent the risk of bankruptcy, and preserve its structures.

Zafirov said that the BSP participated in the governance of the country, driven by the need to guarantee social stability and the protection of vulnerable groups, in spite of the political risks.

For the BSP and other parties on Bulgaria’s political scene, the situation has been changed by the resignation of Roumen Radev as the country’s president, to enter parliamentary politics.

(Photo: BSP)