Bulgarians' silent surrender — A nation’s vote for oblivion

Last Sunday, the so-called Bulgarian public demonstrated its interest in discontinuing its own statehood.

The general parliamentary and European Parliament elections held concurrently on June 9 in Bulgaria produced disastrous results. Although no one expected groundbreaking changes, many hoped for at least some movement in any direction other than straight into the abyss.

However, the political landscape that emerged on Monday, June 10th, is terrifying.

The two Sunday elections clearly demonstrated what a handful of journalists and scholars have been repeating for several years — the demoralization and apathy accumulated in the mass consciousness over more than three decades have proven more effective than all the wars in which Bulgaria has participated since the dawn of its modern statehood 150 years ago.

In 2024, Bulgarians have shown they are not interested in remaining on the political map of Europe and the world

They have come to terms with the idea that the socio-cultural and state-political project known as Bulgaria, after nearly 1,400 years of existence, can now be quietly buried in the cemetery of history.

Of course, it is not solely the Bulgarian public opinion that bears the responsibility for what we are observing. The responsibility for initiating and driving this process undoubtedly lies with the United States of America, whose embassy has taken control of the internal political process in this country since the time of the Colored Revolution in 1996/97. In a sense, this is nothing unusual, as Washington has destroyed many states and nations over the past decades, and even earlier. However, what is grotesque is the way in which Bulgarians are actively participating in this act of self-destruction. Anyone who looks closely at this issue must be seriously concerned. We are dealing not only with obvious political pathology but also psychological and philosophical issues.

In the current situation of Bulgaria, especially in light of what is happening in Ukraine, this society faces an obvious choice between war and peace.

This issue is not unique to Bulgaria, but it is particularly prominent in the public sphere there. This is partly due to the enormous disparity between the overwhelmingly pro-Russian political sentiments of the majority of the population and the fanatically Euro-Atlantic course pursued by client parties managed by “the embassy.” We had the opportunity to hear a few months ago in the leaked recordings from a secret meeting of the leadership of his party, Continue the Change (PP), and their coalition partners from Democratic Bulgaria (DB), how the recent prime minister Kiril Petkov “effectively consulted the selection of intelligence service chiefs” with this embassy.

However, even faced with such a fundamental issue, Bulgarians could not take a clear stance

The recent elections have closed a symbolic cycle of successive dashed hopes.

Those who have been observing Bulgaria over the past few years nostalgically recall the massive mobilization against the blatant corruption of the late Boyko Borissov — a man who ruled Bulgaria in a nearly absolutist manner for some 15 years. Expectations were truly high because the social movement that emerged in 2019 led to an unusual unity across political and sentimental divisions in Bulgaria. The opposition factions united, and the society, though exhausted, was extremely frustrated with the daily agony and disintegration of the state and ready to act. The famous film depicting these phenomena, titled Sofia’s Last Ambulance, was made 12 years ago.

Since then, problems not only in healthcare but in every sector have drastically worsened. And it is not just about infrastructure and the economy, but about everyday life, about reality. There were no political, moral, or legal principles. There was no structure to order public life, which had become an absolute cesspool of corruption and clientelism, closely monitored and manually managed by the American embassy.

Unfortunately, since Boyko Borissov was ousted from power four years ago, everything has been done to ensure that he returns not on a white horse, but in a white limousine, followed by a procession of white camels. With a result of 24 percent, Borisov now has a chance to take the reins of government in Bulgaria again. His party, GERB (Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria), secured first place in both the parliamentary and European Parliament elections in Bulgaria, with a distressingly low voter turnout hovering around 30 percent.

In the National Assembly elections, the second place was taken by another astonishing organization

This organization is one of the most pathological products of Bulgaria's restoration of capitalism — the so-called Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS).

While it is presented as a liberal party, in reality, it is merely an ethno-mafia structure, relying on the support of Bulgarian Turks. It is a typical oligarchic-clientelist organization, surrounded by a network of companies and entities operating at the corporate-political borderline, both in local governments and at the central level. This allows it to control parts of southern Bulgaria due to the ethnic factor and maintain very warm relations with the President of Turkey and his acolytes — a bond far closer than with any institution or faction within Bulgaria itself. It is worth noting that the Bulgarian Constitution prohibits the establishment of ethnic parties, but invoking constitutional norms in the country today can only provoke laughter.

Third came a party, or rather a coalition of two parties, responsible for the greatest disasters of the past two years

One of these disasters was the illegally conducted constitutional reform, which allowed individuals with dual citizenship to access government positions while simultaneously restricting the already limited powers of the popularly elected president. This is particularly relevant to the appointment of technical governments, which govern when it is impossible to form a cabinet by parliamentary majority. Previously, this power was in the hands of the president. Now, each technical government is practically an extension of the previous administration, which is completely contrary to the very idea of forming a provisional government.

This coalition represents a very narrow segment of Bulgarian public opinion, or rather a very narrow segment of Sofia's public opinion, clinging to a pro-Western mythomania unchanged since the 1980s.

These are people fanatically attached to ‘Euro-Atlantic values’ and democracy, whatever that means to them. Their leaders act and speak like preachers or mad doctrinaires — their mission is to forcefully Westernize Bulgaria at any cost.

These are individuals who have openly opposed the majority of Bulgarian society and proudly boast about how brutally they have trampled on its worldview, historical memory, and political emotions. In line with the expectations of the U.S. Embassy in Sofia and the State Department, they have unequivocally positioned Bulgaria on the anti-Russian side of the barricade.

They have also carried out several significant and spectacular actions aimed at tearing apart the last threads of historical-political sentiment that still somewhat unite Bulgarian society — a fraternal relationship with Russia. Examples of such actions include the destruction of the Red Army monument in Sofia and count Ignatiev monument in Varna, attempts to abolish Independence Day celebrated on March 3 (as it is associated with the Russo-Turkish War that led to Bulgaria's reestablishment as a state after 500 years of Ottoman occupation), obstruction of the annual festival of Russian-Bulgarian brotherhood of arms celebrated at the Shipka Pass, and the continuous ostentatious readiness to sacrifice the country's resources for a ‘free Ukraine.’

During the last two years of governance, dominated by the Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria coalition, not even a single centimeter of road was built. This is in stark contrast to Boyko Borissov, who once boasted about adding a kilometer or two to a highway initially built during Zhivkov's era. Now, there wasn't even that. The entire focus was on subordinating Bulgaria to the interests of the American empire. Nothing else happened, not a single microscopic investment was made. There is no point in even mentioning social issues, despite Bulgaria being the poorest country in the EU.

The fact that such a coalition can garner over 16% of the votes today is astonishing. There clearly is no rational justification or reason to vote for these people. There is nothing that can be honestly said in their defense today, yet they still gained 15% of the votes. The voter turnout was dramatically low, which translated into this artificially high election result.

Bulgarians are aware that low voter turnout benefits parties like GERB, PP-DB, and the Turkish DPS

These organizations have an extensive, disciplined, and well-controlled client network. Additionally, vote-buying, a traditional element of Bulgarian democracy since the 1990s, plays a significant role.

The popularity of this mercantile democracy grew in direct proportion to the dramatic pauperization of Roma communities, which became the first victims of deindustrialization, the dismantling of collective farming, and the disbanding of Bulgarian People’s Republic’s Professional Military Forces¹.

The Bulgarian public is well aware of the dangers posed by low voter turnout; an intense debate on this issue has been ongoing for at least a decade. Even now, in the face of the war in Ukraine and the risk that the country could easily be drawn into it with the appropriate dominance of Euro-Atlanticists in the National Assembly, Bulgarians could not overcome their apathy and demoralization.

They did not even go to vote, despite the clear choice between war and peace

The two factions advocating for peace — the nationalists from the Revival party led by Kostadin Kostadinov and the remnants of the Bulgarian Socialist Party — only secured fourth and fifth place, with 14% and 7% of the votes, respectively. Adding to this, the mutual animosity between these parties paints a clear picture of catastrophe.

If the pro-Western leaders of all shades come to an agreement, which Ambassador Kenneth Merten will undoubtedly encourage, Bulgaria is likely to face either continued agony or sudden implosion. As some commentators and journalists claim, in its current state, the country and society cannot withstand more years of Euro-Atlantic demolition.

Well, this is a very optimistic thesis.

1. The term Professional Military Forces (Професионални войски) in the context of the People's Republic of Bulgaria refers to a unique structure of specialized military units that existed during the socialist era. These forces included not only conventional military personnel but also various specialized troops such as for example Construction Troops (Строителни войски) which were responsible for large-scale infrastructure projects, including building roads, bridges, and public buildings.