Bulgarians' Presidential Hopes for Commissioner Georgieva Dashed

Kristalina 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, but herself has denied to have such plans. Photo by SPA

EU Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva, who recently became the first woman to top the most popular politicians' ranking in Bulgaria in 10 years, will not be nominated for the presidential race, the ruling party said.

"Neither Georgieva nor Kuneva will be nominated by GERB to run in the presidential elections," Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov told the morning broadcast of bTV channel, referring to Kristalina Georgieva, the EU's humanitarian aid commissioner, and Meglena Kuneva, former commissioner for consumer protection.

Tsvetanov, who is also head of the elections headquarters of the ruling GERB party, was asked about the ongoing debate over whether the two ladies are eligible to run for president, having lived outside Bulgaria over the last few years.

The Bulgarian Constitution requires that candidates for president are eligible only if they have lived in the country in the last five years.

Meanwhile the Election Code leaves a loophole, saying that the time a Bulgarian citizen has spent abroad after being deployed by the Bulgarian state should be included in this period.

Minister Tsvetanov refused to answer the question, but was quick to express confidence that his party's nominee, whoever he or she is, will sweep the elections for the high, though largely ceremonial, office of president.

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, but herself has denied to have such plans.

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.

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.

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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