Bulgarian society knows what it is protesting for. It is protesting against the system, against this model, against the budget, against poisoning, it is protesting personally against the leaders. This was said by sociologist Dobromir Zhivkov in the program "This Morning" on bTV.
He commented on a study by "Market Links" and bTV conducted in the period 3-7 December among 1009 people over 18 years of age using the direct personal interview or survey method.
Sympathizers of "There is such a people" and the BSP support the protests. Their results are above average, Zhivkov explained.
We are observing a decline in trust in both the prime minister and the cabinet. Political leaders who are in government are suffering a decline. Society has its eyes on the president. He remains the only political figure with a positive rating, Zhivkov added.
According to him, if we have elections today, we could surpass the 50.6% voter turnout we had in 2021. "Society is becoming politicized and it is very clear what this protest is about," he added. Dobromir Zhivkov also noted that 25% of those who firmly decided to vote did not choose their political force.
82% of Bulgarians are protesting against the model of government. This is according to data from a survey by the sociological agency „Market LINKS“.
The national survey, jointly funded and implemented by bTV and „Market LINKS“, was conducted among 1,009 people over 18 in the country in the period 3-7 December using the methods of direct personal interviews and an online survey.
61% of those surveyed disagree with the statement that the protests aim to sow chaos, while 31% hold the opposite opinion. 9% have no opinion.
„Bulgarian society knows exactly what it is protesting for. It is protesting against the system of government, against this model, against the budget. It wants the cabinet to resign and is protesting against the leaders of this coalition,“ commented in „This Morning“ the sociologist from „Market LINKS“ Dobromir Zhivkov.
He specified that the supporters of the BSP and “There is such a people“ support the protest, and their results are above average.
How many parties will enter parliament if an early vote is held?
According to the sociologist, there is an extremely interesting dynamic in the support for the parties.
GERB-SDF are the first political force with 17% support. Second is PP-DB with 14.7% support. Third is “Vazrazhdane“ with 9.3% support, and fourth is “DPS-New Beginning“ with 9.1% support. Fifth is MECH with 5.3%, and sixth is BSP with 4.7% support.
„The serious decline in the share of support for GERB is obvious, as it has decreased by 5% in the last month,“ specified the sociologist from „Market LINKS“.
A mobilization of PP-DB supporters is observed. „Vazrazhdane“ remains stable, and with „DPS-New Beginning“ there is also a decline of about 4%.
Under the 4 percent barrier, if the elections were held today, „Velicie“, „Ima takoj narod“ and APS remain.
Trust in political figures
„It seems that political figures currently – those related to governance - are suffering a decline. Boyko Borisov, who usually has around 21-24% approval, is now at his low point of approval and at the peak of disapproval - 88%,“ commented the sociologist.
Regarding President Rumen Radev, he pointed out that “views towards him are returning“ and especially in terms of reducing distrust in him.
„He, as usual, remains the only public figure with a positive rating“, added Zhivkov.
„To some extent, trust in opposition leaders is being restored“, the sociologist also said.
„Slavi Trifonov is obviously in a completely different situation than in April and June 2021, namely with the disappointment that he was unable to fulfill the request with which he came to the political scene“, commented Dobromir Zhivkov.
According to him, distrust in Delyan Peevski is at a record high – 81%.
There is a clear trend of politicization of Bulgarian society – returning to topics related to governance. Again, a large part of Bulgarians are ready to vote – over 3.4 million can go to the polls at the moment.
„For“ and „Against“ the budget
72% of those who participated in the sociological survey are against the budget. 11% are „for“, and 17% have no opinion.
56% of Bulgarian citizens support the demand for the resignation of the „Zhelyazkov“ cabinet.
„Again, we have a clearly expressed position. And yet, many people are worried that the country will not enter an election spiral again“, specified Dobromir Zhivkov.
Assessment of the country's development direction
„We are observing a parallel decline in trust in both Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov and the government. "Since January, when the government came in with about 27% trust, it is now almost 10 points down," the sociologist said.
“It seems to me that there is a serious blockage in the current National Assembly. However, for now the parliament is working until there is a resignation and the next mandates are rotated. We cannot say anything more than that“, commented Dobromir Zhivkov.