It is not certain that the right's candidate for president will be Andrey Gyurov. Consolidation on the right will be difficult, and a conservative candidate may surprisingly reach a runoff with Iliyana Yotova. This was commented on by political scientist and university lecturer Assoc. Prof. Stoycho Stoychev and journalist Mira Badzheva on BNT, quoted by novini.bg.
„The right cannot adjust. There are many appetites there and it will be difficult for them to reach a consensus figure. Because it's not just Andrey Gyurov. There are others who are warming up at the start. It seems to me that Nikolay Denkov is one of them. That's why it won't be very easy for Andrey Gyurov to be broadcast. Nikolay Denkov also answered quite evasively to the question of who the right-wing candidate will be“, said Badzheva.
„Both Yotova and Gyurov are progressive candidates, while common sense does not have its own candidate – a conservative candidate who would refer to more traditional Christian and European values“, commented Stoychev.
„The left denies some things like religion and belief in God. While Mr. Gyurov is a representative of modern progressive thought, he can hardly be perceived as a conservative candidate. We haven't seen him go to church. The big debate right now is not left vs. right, but the clash of values – between neoliberalism and European conservatism. This would be the more substantive debate“, he is categorical.
According to Badzheva, there has been no delay in the support of “Progressive Bulgaria“ for Iliyana Yotova.
“She is a much more communicative president than the previous ones were, and she knows how to handle communication channels. She also cut through an intrigue that was spreading very actively in recent months – that PB will not support her and that Rumen Radev will not stand behind her. This was nipped in the bud“, the journalist said.
According to her, Yotova herself built her competitor after she elevated him to the position of acting prime minister.
„She could have chosen another candidate from among the contenders, but she did not want to be accused of giving a chance to Peevski's people, who were in the other part of the so-called “home book“. The other interesting thing is that inside the PP–DB Andrey Gyurov is not so well received. It is said that there is some tension between him and the PP leader. Kandev was also mentioned as an option for vice president, but from what I saw in his interview over the weekend, I was not left with such an impression. They say they are happy for him because of his charisma, but in my opinion this person has already been eliminated as a serious contender – was not convincing“, she added.
Stoychev also developed this thesis.
„Rumen Radev created „We continue the change“ with politicians like Kiril Petkov and Assen Vassilev, and now he wants to enter into a controversy with them and their candidate“, he said.
The political scientist expects Andrey Gyurov to announce his candidacy himself and rely on an initiative committee.
He did not rule out surprises in the presidential elections.
„At best, we may see a runoff again like the one between Georgi Parvanov and Volen Siderov in 2006. It is possible that Kostadin Kostadinov will run for president and reach the second round, because conservative voters do not see Gyurov as their candidate. "This could repeat the situation from 20 years ago," Stoychev said.
Badjeva also commented on GERB's position. "Boyko Borisov, when it's not to his advantage, waits. He sees that Iliyana Yotova will be difficult to defeat. To a large extent, the outcome of the elections seems clear, unless a miracle happens and all right-wing parties unite around one candidate. But this will be difficult, because GERB must also be included in such a scenario," she said.