29/11/2024 Standing Committee | Election observation
The PACE delegation that observed Bulgaria's early parliamentary elections (9 June and 27 October 2024) has deplored that “the ongoing cycle of elections has plunged Bulgaria into near-constant campaign mode, intensifying political challenges and leading to entrenched instability”. It also expressed concern that although free and well-administered, these elections were marred by allegations of massive vote-buying, which need to be properly investigated and the perpetrators brought to justice.
The report, prepared by Oleksii Goncharenko (Ukraine, EC/DA) and Alfred Heer (Switzerland, ALDE), debated at the Standing Committee in Luxembourg today, emphasises that “the latest elections failed again to resolve the prolonged political crisis, offering little hope for the formation of a stable and durable government”. It mentions “a troubling erosion of traditional parties, increased political fragmentation, a surge in populism and widespread public disillusionment”.
Faced with this political deadlock, the delegation believes that “recently elected political forces should remain open to innovative and possibly temporary solutions”, such as forming a government of technocrats or experts or other workable measures that could help break the cycle of repeated elections yielding the same outcomes, and invited political actors to move beyond partisan divisions.