The candidacy of Andrey Gyurov and Georgi Kandev changes the configuration before the presidential elections. Gyurov will try to attract not only the traditional right-wing and urban vote, but also a broader group of voters, while the big unknown remains what GERB's move will be. This was commented on by political scientists Prof. Maria Pirgova and Teodor Slavev and former Minister of Energy Miroslav Sevlievski.
According to Prof. Pirgova, the first messages of Gyurov and Kandev place a strong emphasis on the East-West orientation and support from the democratic community, but this may not be enough to expand support.
“I think these are rather restrictive lines to open the door to more political forces“, she commented.
According to her, the couple will claim a runoff, but will have to make serious efforts to expand their support beyond the right-wing political spectrum.
Teodor Slavev defined as a positive fact that the main candidates at the moment are not radical. He also emphasized the importance of the president's powers, which, in his opinion, should be part of the pre-election debate.
„Another question is what the president's constitutional powers are, because now, if there is an expectation that the president will lower the prices of goods in stores, this cannot happen in our constitutional system“, the political scientist pointed out.“
According to him, among the key issues are the appointments made by the head of state.
„Let's not forget that the next president of Bulgaria will sign a decree appointing the next prosecutor general and the chairman of the Supreme Administrative Court“, Slavev said.
Miroslav Sevlievski predicts that the campaign will not be marked by radical messages. He described the candidacy of Gyurov and Kandev as “decent“.
“And we can safely say that the candidacy of Gyurov and Kandev is decent. And if they run a decent campaign, they have a good chance of going to a runoff,” Sevlievski said.
According to him, the presidential campaign will also be important because of the international situation.
“There are many things for which the next president will be important“, he said, pointing to topics such as the future of European defense, the role of Turkey, NATO and changes in the European Union.
The other big question before the campaign is who will be the vice-presidential candidate next to Iliana Yotova and whether his choice can affect her support.
According to Prof. Maria Pirgova, the vice-president will be particularly important for expanding the electoral base.
“For her, in my opinion, the vice-president is very important because she herself will lead her pro-European policy, and the vice-president, in my opinion, should be much more patriotic, with a much more patriotic style and narrative strong“, said Prof. Maria Pirgova.
According to her, the key themes of the campaign will include peace, war and sovereignty, as well as Bulgaria's place between Russia, Turkey, the European Union and NATO.
Theodor Slavev warned that foreign policy should not become the main dividing line in the campaign. According to him, the president has the right to an opinion on international issues, but not on his own foreign policy.
Miroslav Sevlievski predicts that Iliana Yotova's campaign will be strongly linked to Rumen Radev.
„Rumen Radev will shine through the whole time and I am sure that Yotova's opponents will try to turn these elections into a referendum for and against Radev“, he said.
According to him, this comparison can hardly be avoided after the nine years in which Radev and Yotova have been together as president and vice president.
The biggest unknown before the elections remains GERB's decision whether to nominate its own candidate, political scientists say.
According to Prof. Pirgova, Borisov is in a complicated situation.
„Borisov is very well oriented in reality and he is in a very difficult position to nominate a candidate who will eventually come in third place“, she commented.
According to her, refusing to participate could be a strategic mistake. She pointed out that the presidential elections could be an important test for GERB structures before the local vote.
According to Miroslav Sevlievski, however, Borisov could wait for a mistake by the main candidates.