Commissioner Georgieva Dashes Bulgarians' Hopes for Presidential Bid
Domestic | January 12, 2011, Wednesday // 11:45| viewsBulgaria-language Internet forums have been overflowing with calls for Kristalina Georgieva, the EU's humanitarian aid commissioner (pictured), to run in this year's presidential elections. Photo by BGNES
EU Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva, who recently became the first woman to top the most popular politicians' ranking in Bulgaria in 10 years, has denied once again intentions to run for Bulgarian President for the time being.
"The lucky charm I drew from the banitza this year said I will be travelling far away. It did not say I will be returning home," Georgieva told local 24 Hours daily, referring to the traditional Bulgarian pastry with lucky charms for New Year's Eve.
Georgieva has been rumored time and again in the Bulgarian media as a likely candidate of the ruling center-right GERB party in the Bulgarian Presidential Elections in the fall of 2011.
At the beginning of October, her spokesperson formally refuted any such allegations saying that nobody had asked Georgieva to run for President of Bulgaria.
Kristalina Georgieva won at the end of last year the title of 'European of the Year' and "Commissioner of the Year', awarded by Brussels-based media European Voice, triggering pride and enthusiasm in her home country Bulgaria.
Internet forums were overflowing with calls for Georgieva to run in this year's presidential elections.
Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has expressed conviction that his party has among its ranks at least five likely nominees able to sweep the elections for the high, though largely ceremonial, office of president. He has even hinted to journalists that he might run for president.
The ruling party GERB is unlikely to nominate Interior Minister Tsvetanov, as initially planned, because of the string of discrediting information revealed about him recently.
Meanwhile it emerged that notorious Bulgarian businessman, ex-secret agent and suspected crime boss Aleksei Petrov and nationalist leader Volen Siderov will run for president in the autumn.
Incumbent Socialist President Georgi Parvanov was re-elected for a second five-year term in 2006 and isn't eligible to run in 2011 vote.
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