They changed the master: The mayors of Delyan Peevski
Do you know who is second in number of mayors in Bulgaria after GERB? « MRF-New Home » and its leader Delyan Peevski. Without being in local elections, 34 local rulers have joined his strategy for the development of the regions, a check on Deutsche Welle showed. This makes it a second force in the local government after GERB, which hold half the municipalities.
In the last three months alone, the formation, headed by a sanctioned corruption by the United States and the UK, has become a gravitational center for local authorities. Almost daily, a photo of a new mayor with Peevski, accompanied by a press release, appears that another has been in a « new beginning for the development of the regions ».
Bulgaria in the embrace of the Peevski – Borisov tandem
They changed the master
Most of these mayors did not change their political affiliation – they changed their master.
| Submission to politics is often a matter of benefits, not of principles. Many politicians over the years have been sneaking from one party to another, depending on which leader guarantees them to protect them and feed them. |
Much of the mayors in the Peevski camp were elected by the MRF list in the fall of 2023, when the party reported an impressive 37 mayoral victories in the first round. A year later, in the October 2024 parliamentary elections, over one-third of them already declared fidelity to the Peevski formation.
The process was accelerated after MRF-New Home announced solid support for the ruling coalition between GERB-UDS, BSP-Obedina Left and « There is such a people » (ITN), assuring that it is selfless.
Currently, Peev mayors are allocated as follows: Blagoevgrad District – Belitsa, Garmen, Satovcha, Yakoruda; Burgas District – Sungurlare; Vratsa District – Hayredin, Roman; Kyustendil District – Bobov Dol, Boboshevo; Kardzhali District – Kardzhali, Jebel, Chernoochene; Pazardzhik District – Sarnitsa; Razgrad District – Testament, Isperih, Kubrat, Loznitsa; Silistra District – Silistra, Glavinitsa, Sitovo; Smolyan District – Borino, Nedelino; Stara Zagora District – Galabovo, Gurkovo, Pavel Banya; Targovishte District – Antonovo, Omurtag, Opaka; Haskovo – Madjarovo, Stambolovo; Shumen District – Wreath, Varbitsa, Kaolinovo, Nikola Kozlevo.
The new additions to Peevski: Mayor of BSP, Local Coalition and close to GERB have passed into « New Beginning »
This is how the geographical map of the « new beginning », found « Deutsche Welle » – and it goes beyond the mixed population areas, where the ethnic composition guaranteed the dominance of the MRF. Among the mayors who recently discovered the attractiveness of Peevski’s strategy are such as the mayor of Boboshevo Stefan Tachev, erected by Green Movement, and Hayredin – Todor Alexiev, investigated for road accidents. Curious is the case with the Mayor of Gurkovo Kancho Papazov, who in the local elections appears as an independent, supported by a bunch of political forces such as GERB-SDS, PP-DB, BSP, ITN, « Revival », VMRO, not by the MRF. In front of the truth site, he explains the move with Peevski with the argument that he thinks about the development of the municipality and denies rumors of pre -trial proceedings for large -scale VAT drainage.
And Silistra Mayor Alexander Sabanov has no problem changing horses while making a political career. Over the years, he has been a GERB municipal councilor and a local coalition with the leading New Time Party, a candidate for mayor with colorful support from the Reform Bloc, Greens, VMRO and anyone, a United Patriots MP.
Preparing for next elections
In the next elections, 34 mayors out of a total of 265 in Bulgaria is a significant advantage. The local government provides a stable political influence and feeds business circles and organizations close to parties, which also explains Peevski’s strategy. And in many places, the mayor is followed by both the City Council and the mayors of small settlements.
| The process with the tidal wave of mayors to « New Beginning » has not been observed so far in Bulgarian politics and undermines confidence in democracy. He crossed the votes of the citizens – if they were really the result of their free will, not pressure and control. |
But the mayors are elected with a majority vote, which gives them more autonomy than party structures. Mayors with several consecutive terms also build their network of loyalty and influence, far beyond the capacity of the local party structure. Thanks to these relationships, they win elections and the parties use them as profitable persons.
There is no legal ban on mayor of changing the party platform after being elected. And voters cannot respond – as they cannot respond, if they break away from their group, nor do they disagree in an institutional way until his term is over.
Ivaylo Mirchev and Bozhidar Bozhanov before Dnevnik: If we do not consolidate, there is a risk of Peevski to become prime minister
| But in the Razgrad region, which remained in the field of influence of Ahmed Dogan and his associates, the breakthrough came later. Of the seven municipalities in Razgrad District, four are already in the camp of MRF-New Home. |
Peevski’s regional strategy seems to be a magnet for other mayors. The BNR statement of pre -trial inspections by the European Prosecutor’s Office and the DGBOP mayor of Simitli Apostol Apostolov was unnoticed. He appears as mayor as independent with colorful party support, and winning his sixth term was marked with a dawn. Apostolov told the public media about what an ambitious and hardworking boy was Peevski at dawn in politics – and how he « goes up and is convinced that his time will come to rule. » Other panegicists convince how folk person he is.
The new beginning is actually old with a new master.
And politicians pretend not to see the raid of local authorities.
