The National Assembly () is the

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

parliament and

legislative body A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers o ...

of the

Republic of Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. The first National Assembly was established in 1879 with the

Tarnovo Constitution The Tarnovo Constitution () was the first constitution of Bulgaria. It was adopted on 16 April 1879 (Adoption of the Gregorian calendar#Adoption in Eastern Europe, O.S.) by the Constituent National Assembly of Bulgaria, National Assembly held in ...

. During the communist period between 1946 and 1989, the National Assembly was the

supreme organ of state power The supreme state organ of power, also known as the highest state organ of power, is the representative organ in communist states that functions as the sole branch of government according to the principle of unified power. For example, the governm ...

and the only branch of government in Bulgaria and, in accordance with the principle of

unified power Unified power is the political power principle of communist states, whereby political power, instead of being separated into different branches as Montesquieu called for, is unified, in the state's case, in the highest organ of state power. This ...

, all state organs were subservient to it. Most of the National Assembly's actions were characterized as a

rubber stamp A rubber stamp is an image or pattern that has been carved, molded, laser engraved, or vulcanized onto a sheet of rubber. Rubber stamping, also called stamping, is a craft in which some type of ink made of dye or pigment is applied to a rub ...

for the

Bulgarian Communist Party The Bulgarian Communist Party ( Bulgarian: Българска комунистическа партия (БΚП), Romanised: ''Bŭlgarska komunisticheska partiya''; BKP) was the founding and ruling party of the People's Republic of Bulgaria f ...

(BKP) or as only being able to affect issues of low sensitivity and salience to the Bulgarian communist regime. The BCP controlled nomination and election processes at every level in its political system, allowing it to stamp out any opposition.

Ordinary National Assembly

The National Assembly consists of 240 members elected for a four-year term, elected by

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...

in multi-seat

constituencies An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

. Political parties must garner a minimum of 4% of the national vote in order to enter the Assembly. Bulgaria has a multi-party system. The Assembly is responsible for enactment of laws, approval of the budget, scheduling of presidential elections, selection and dismissal of the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

and other ministers, declaration of war, concluding peace and deployment of troops outside Bulgaria, and ratification of international treaties and agreements. It is headed and presided by the

Chairperson of the National Assembly of Bulgaria The chairperson of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria () is the Speaker (politics), presiding officer of the National Assembly (Bulgaria), National Assembly of Bulgaria. The assembly selects the chairperson during its opening se ...

. The Assembly administers the publication of the '' State Gazette'', Bulgaria's gazette of record.

Procedure

By the Constitution, the National Assembly is inaugurated by the eldest elected member of Parliament. On the first day of sitting, they preside over the election of the Speaker (Chairperson) and two deputies. Once elected, the Speakers retain their party allegiances, which means that they remain as MPs and are allowed to take part in debates and voting. 121 MPs must be present in order for any session to commence, and 50%+1 of those present must vote "for" any point of order or bill to be approved. Ministers may be chosen from among the MPs or they may be experts outside Parliament. All MPs picked to be Cabinet ministers lose their MP status, and other members from their party are called up to Parliament to fill the seats they vacate. Parliament sits Wednesday to Friday, and sessions begin at 9 am. Parliamentary committees sit in the afternoons.

Layout

Old Parliament House

In 2020-2021, the old Parliament House was only used for special occasions, such as the opening and closing of the legislative session or the inauguration of a new president. Following the April 2021 parliamentary elections, the legislature returned to the old parliament building. The Chamber is made up of 286 seats, all facing the 5-seat speaker's bench in a 26 x 11 arrangement. In front of the Speaker, also facing the chamber, is the pulpit, in front of which is the stenographers' desk. Parties sit in parliamentary groups, loosely following the rule that the political left sits to the Speaker's left and the political right to his right. Generally, the largest parties choose the chamber's left, right or centre wings, with smaller blocks accommodating themselves wherever convenient. Individual MPs will sometimes sit entirely outside their block or stand, and, since compulsory electronic registration was implemented, may even vote from any seat in the house. To the speaker's right, also facing the chamber, is a section with 17 seats reserved for the Cabinet, any of whom may or may not be present at any time during a parliamentary session. Any of them may, however, be called up by Parliament at any time if needed.

Largo Parliament House

Located in the former

headquarters building in the Largo, The Chamber is made up of 270 seats arranged in a

hemicycle A hemicycle is a semicircular, or horseshoe-shaped, legislative debating chamber where members sit to discuss and vote on their business. Although originally of Ancient Greek roots, the term and modern design derive from French politics and p ...

of twelve rows, all facing the 7-seat speaker's bench. In front of the Speaker, also facing the chamber, is the pulpit containing a stenographer's desk at the center and two sections reserved for the Cabinet, each with 13 seats, at the sides. The new plenary hall, which is located under a glass roof, is larger than the old one and can be easily remodeled to fit the 400-member Grand National Assembly. It was used briefly in 2020-2021 during the end of

GERB GERB, an acronym for Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (), is a conservative center-right populist political party which was the ruling party of Bulgaria during the periods between 2009–2013, 2014-2021, 2025-present and was suppor ...

's third government. Following the April 2021 parliamentary elections, the legislature returned to the old parliament building.

Grand National Assembly

In addition to the ordinary National Assembly, a Grand National Assembly (''Велико народно събрание'', ''Veliko narodno sabranie'') may be convened for matters of special jurisdiction, such as: 1) Adoption of a new Constitution; 2) Amendment of certain articles of the Constitution, e.g. those related with the basic civil rights; 3) Changes in the territory (gain or loss) of the Republic, etc. Before the World War II the Grand National Assembly was also competent in electing the Regency of the Bulgarian Kingdom if the tzar had not come to age. The First and the Third Grand National Assemblies also elected the first two Bulgarian monarchs after the liberation from Ottoman rule – Prince (Knjaz) Alexander Battenberg and Prince (Knjaz) Ferdinand Saxe Coburg-Gotha. As an organ, the Grand National Assembly was introduced with the

of 1879, abolished in 1947 and reintroduced with the 1991 constitution. In different constitutional provisions, it was constituted by a different number of representatives. According to the 1991 Constitution, it consists of 400 deputies (as opposed to 240 in the ordinary one). The 1991 Constitution was adopted by the Seventh Grand National Assembly and was composed of 200 members being elected by proportional representation and the other 200 under a

first-past-the-post voting First-past-the-post (FPTP)—also called choose-one, first-preference plurality (FPP), or simply plurality—is a single-winner voting rule. Voters mark one candidate as their favorite, or first-preference, and the candidate with more first- ...

system. The Constitution provides that the elections for Grand National Assembly shall be conducted in the same manner as those for the Ordinary National Assembly. A

qualified majority A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fund ...

of 2/3 during three voting procedures on separate dates is required for a decision to be made. The Grand National Assembly can also serve as an ordinary National Assembly, taking care of regular legislative activities in urgent cases only. After it has concluded its work on the matter for which it was elected, the Grand National Assembly is dissolved ''ex lege'' and the President of the Republic shall appoint elections for an ordinary National Assembly. A total of seven Grand National Assemblies have been in operation in Bulgaria, the last one from 10 July 1990 to 12 July 1991 adopting the current constitution.

Building

The National Assembly's main building has been proclaimed a monument of culture for its historic significance. Situated in downtown

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

, it was designed in the

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century Revivalism (architecture), architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival architecture, Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival ar ...

style by

Konstantin Jovanović Konstantin Jovanović ( sr-cyr, Константин Јовановић; ; 13 January 1849 – 15 February 1923) was a Serbian and Bulgarian architect known for providing the original designs of the National Assembly of Bulgaria and National Asse ...

. Due to insufficient space in the main building at Parliament Square, the National Assembly is now housed by the former headquarters of the Bulgarian Communist Party, located at the Largo - the so-called Party House. Initially, only administrative offices have been relocated, but proposals to convert the into an interior space for the

plenary chamber A debate chamber is a room for conducting the business of a deliberative assembly or otherwise for debating. When used as the meeting place of a legislature, a debate chamber may also be known as a council chamber, legislative chamber, assembly ...

have been made since 1996, with the relocation taking place in 2020. After the April 2021 Bulgarian parliamentary election, the National Assembly moved again to the old Parliament House because

ITN Independent Television News (ITN) is a UK-based media production and broadcast journalism company. ITN is based in London, with bureaux and offices in Beijing, Brussels, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, New York City, New York, Paris, Sydney and Washin ...

Democratic Bulgaria Democratic Bulgaria (, ДБ, ''Demokratichna Balgariya, DB'') is a political alliance in Bulgaria. Founded on 12 April 2018 as an electoral alliance between three political parties – DaB, DSB and the Green Movement, it merged into PP-DB in 2 ...

, ISMV, and DPS viewed the Party House building as a symbol of Bulgaria's communist past.

List of National Assemblies

Historical composition of the National Assembly

1990-2005

2009-2017

Since 2021

Notes

External links

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Bulgaria The National Assembly

{{DEFAULTSORT:National Assembly Of Bulgaria 1991 establishments in Bulgaria

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...