Ekaterina Spasova Gecheva-Zaharieva (, born 8 August 1975) is a Bulgarian politician serving as European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation. She served as

Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria The Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria () is the deputy of the Prime Minister of Bulgaria and a member of the Government of Bulgaria. They can also be one of the Ministers of Bulgaria. The position is oftentimes held multiple people at once. https ...

from 2017 to 2021 and on two occasions from 2013 to 2014. A member of the

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 ...

party, she also served as

Minister of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...

from 2017 to 2021,

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

from 2015 to 2017, Minister of Regional Development on two occasions from 2013 to 2014 and Member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

from 2021 to 2024.

Early life and education

Zaharieva was born in

Pazardzhik Pazardzhik ( ) is a city situated along the banks of the Maritsa river, southern Bulgaria. It is the centre of Pazardzhik Province and Pazardzhik Municipality. It is located in the Upper Thracian Plain and in the Pazardzhik-Plovdiv Field, a ...

in 1975. She became fluent in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

at her local college, then attended the

University of Plovdiv A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

where she graduated in law. This was followed by a law master's degree.Ekaterina Zakharieva
President of the Republic, retrieved January 2014

Career

She worked as a lawyer until 2003. She then became a legal Advisor of the Ministry of Environment and Water. Zaharieva became the Director of Legal, Administrative and Regulatory Services in 2007. Entering politics in 2009, she became the Deputy Minister of Regional Development to the Minister

Rosen Plevneliev Rosen Asenov Plevneliev (, born 14 May 1964) is a Bulgarian politician who served as the 4th President of Bulgaria from 2012 to 2017. Affiliated with the GERB party, he previously served as Minister of Regional Development and Public Works fro ...

. When Plevneliev became President of Bulgaria, he chose her for the position of one of the Deputy Prime Ministers from March to May in 2013.Visit of Ekaterina Zakharieva, Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Regional Development and Public Works, to the EC
March 2013, retrieved January 2014 She was interim deputy Prime Minister to

Marin Raykov Marin Raykov Nikolov ( ; born 17 December 1960) is a Bulgarian people, Bulgarian politician and diplomat who was appointed to serve as a Caretaker government, caretaker Prime Minister of Bulgaria and Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Bulgaria), ministe ...

in the Bulgarian Cabinet. In 2013 she was the Minister of Regional Development. From 18 December 2015 she served as Minister of Justice until 27 January 2017. She became the

Foreign Minister of Bulgaria The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (, abbreviated ''МВнР'', or ''MVnR'') of Bulgaria is the ministry charged with overseeing the foreign relations of Bulgaria. The seat of the ministry is located at 2 Alexander Zhendov Str in the capital Sofia ...

on 4 May 2017. In August 2024 she was nominated, alongside Julian Popov, by the

Bulgarian Government The Council of Ministers (, ''Ministerski savet'') is the main authority of the executive power in the Republic of Bulgaria. It consists of the Prime Minister of Bulgaria and all the specialized ministers. Overview Bulgaria employs a dual ...

to be the next commissioner in the second

von der Leyen Commission Von der Leyen Commission refers to either of two consecutive European Commissions headed by Ursula von der Leyen: * Von der Leyen Commission I (2019–2024) * Von der Leyen Commission II The second von der Leyen Commission is the current Euro ...

. Bulgaria was the only country to have followed Von der Leyen's request to nominate two candidates. Zaharieva was chosen by von der Leyen and proposed as the next Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation. On 27 November 2024, the European Parliament elected the College of Commissioners as a whole. The newly appointed Commission is starting its five-year term as from 1 December 2024.

References

, - 1975 births Living people People from Pazardzhik Ministers of foreign affairs of Bulgaria Female foreign ministers Women government ministers of Bulgaria 21st-century Bulgarian politicians 21st-century Bulgarian women politicians Deputy prime ministers of Bulgaria Bulgarian women diplomats Female justice ministers Justice ministers of Bulgaria European commissioners (2024–2029) Bulgarian European commissioners {{Bulgaria-politician-stub

Early life and education

Career

See also

References