The Reformist Bloc () was a
centre-right
Centre-right politics is the set of right-wing politics, right-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. It is commonly associated with conservatism, Christian democracy, liberal conservatism, and conservative liberalis ...
electoral alliance
An electoral alliance (also known as a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral pact, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc) is an association of political parties or individuals that exists solely to stand in elections.
E ...
in
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 ...
.
History
The
coalition
A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces.
Formation
According to ''A G ...
agreement to form the alliance was signed on 20 December 2013. The five parties that signed the agreement were:
Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria
Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria () is a list of political parties in Bulgaria, political party in Bulgaria established by former Bulgarian Prime Minister Ivan Kostov (1997–2001).
History
Kostov resigned as chairman of the United Democratic F ...
,
Bulgaria for Citizens Movement
Bulgaria for Citizens Movement () is a political party in 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 rive ...
,
Union of Democratic Forces,
People's Party Freedom and Dignity, and the
. At the time of signing the coalition the parties had one seat in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
but none in 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 ...
.
In early August 2014 spokesperson
Radan Kanev resigned because of what he said was a lack of unity within the alliance: "The image of a united multi-party coalition was replaced by an image of a traditional coalition with many and often conflicting interests."
He initially supported the government, led by Prime Minister Boyko Borisov. Politicians from the Reformist Bloc received ministerial posts as coalition partners.
In December 2015, DSB turned into opposition because of the discontent with the speed and depth of the judicial reform by the second government of
Boyko Borisov. Minister Petar Moskov retained his post but was excluded from his DSB leadership. This event marked a new flaw in the Reformist Bloc. The other coalition partners remained in the government. The Parliamentary Group of the Reformist Bloc does not split up. At the end of 2016 DSB left the block. In February 2017, the People's Party "Freedom and Dignity" left to join Lutvi Mestan's
DOST.
Elections
The electoral alliance made its debut in the
2014 European Parliament election
The 2014 European Parliament election was held in the European Union (EU) between 22 and 25 May 2014. It was the 8th parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979, and the first in which the European political parties field ...
.
Meglena Kuneva, the leader of Bulgaria for Citizens Movement, was placed as number one on the party's list. However,
Svetoslav Malinov from Democrats for Strong Bulgaria won the only place for the alliance in the European Parliament due to the preferential voting in his favour.
Statistics
See also
*
Blue Coalition, a previous centre-right electoral alliance in Bulgaria
References
External links
Official Blog of the Reformist Bloc
Conservative parties in Bulgaria
Conservative liberal parties
Liberal parties in Bulgaria
Parties related to the European People's Party
Defunct political party alliances in Bulgaria
2013 establishments in Bulgaria
Pro-European political parties in Bulgaria
{{Bulgaria-party-stub