3 Bid for Bulgarian President's Constitutional Court Appointment

Bulgarian President Plevneliev (right) with Chief Prosecutor Velchev in June 2012. Photo by BGNES

There are at least three magistrates bidding for the appointment to the Bulgarian Constitutional Court by President Rosen Plevneliev, the president himself revealed.

Plevneliev is supposed to announce the appointment of a Constitutional Court judge to replace the chairman of the Bulgarian CC Evgeni Tanchev, whose term is set to expire in November 2012.

"There are at least three candidates to become Constitutional Court judges," the Bulgarian President told reporters on Monday, as cited by Dnevnik, when asked if he planned to appoint Bulgaria's outgoing Chief Prosecutor Boris Velchev, as had been reported earlier.

"Nothing happens by chance at the Presidency, we are seeking maximum transparency and competitiveness," Plevneliev said, without revealing his choices.

Velchev's term as Chief Prosecutor expires on February 19, 2013. Under Bulgaria's older legislation, his successor's election was supposed to start two months before the end of his term, and to end one month before that date.

Bulgaria's ruling center-right party GERB recently amended the law allowing the procedure to be started by the country's Supreme Judicial Council (VSS) 6 months earlier, i.e. on August 19, 2012.

Political rumors had it the amendment was done in order to provide for the earlier election of a new Chief Prosecutor so that Velchev could step down earlier and join the Constitutional Court. Velchev himself has not commented on these rumors.

On Monday, President Rosen Plevneliev promised to reveal his appointment shortly supported by clear arguments.

"We will give the civil society an opportunity to express its opinion as we did it in the previous appointment to the Constitutional Court. I'm not just going to sign a decree at the last moment, under the table," the President promised.

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