Commissioner Georgieva Dashes Bulgarians' Hopes for Presidential Bid

EU commissioner of Humanitarian Aid Kristalina Georgieva (R) speaks with evacuees from Fukushima during her visit at a Doho Park gymnasium in Tsukuba, Ibaraki prefecture, Japan, 26 March 2011. Photo by EPA/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.

"I have a lot of work to do and will definitely finish my term as European Commissioner," Kristalina Georgieva, the EU's humanitarian aid commissioner, told the morning broadcast of Nova TV channel on Monday when asked about plans to join the presidential race.

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.

Local media pictured her as a likely candidate of the ruling center-right GERB party in the presidential elections in the fall of 2011, while Internet forums overflowed with calls for her to run.

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has expressed conviction that his party has among its ranks several nominees able to sweep the elections for the high, though largely ceremonial, office of president.

Boyko Borisov, a lady and one more candidate are the options that the ruling GERB party is considering for runners in the presidential elections, the interior minister said last week.

The party 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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