President Rumen Radev will hold consultations with the parliamentary forces on Friday before handing a third exploratory mandate for forming a new government within the life of the current National Assembly, the President’s Press Secretariat said on Thursday.
Radev will receive representatives of the seven parliamentary groups separately, beginning at 9 a.m. and ending at 4.45 p.m., in order of group size: Continue the Change, GERB-UDF, Movement for Rights and Freedoms, BSP for Bulgaria, There Is Such a People, Democratic Bulgaria, and Vazrazhdane.
The largest parliamentary group, Continue the Change, returned the first exploratory mandate unfulfilled on July 8 after falling six MPs short of securing the necessary majority in the National Assembly. On July 14, the second-largest group, GERB-UDF, returned the second mandate as soon as receiving it from President Radev, without attempting to put together a government.
Earlier this week, the President stated that if the second mandate is returned unfulfilled, he will invite all parliamentary forces to consultations before handing a third mandate to a parliamentary group of his choice. If the third mandate is returned unfulfilled, the President must disband the National Assembly and schedule snap elections.
