How do Bulgarians elect their governing figures

"The subject must be undoubtedly literate, have a satisfactory command of beautiful handwriting, read quickly silently without staring, and most of all have a satisfactory command of simple calculations - the multiplication table and other arithmetic tricks .” This is how a Bulgarian feuilleton humorously describes how a century agо in our latitudes, they imagined the ideal candidate who, in the elected institutions, would defend the citizens' right to well-being, an ennobled environment and a dignified life. ‎

And although those who are formally on their way to power today meet most of the criteria - especially if, like a bird, we fly over their "handwriting" on social networks, this does not make them the most preferred. Because, in addition to the skills that could be acquired with diligence, the former Bulgarians demanded from their chosen ones virtues such as a good family, a decent appearance and dignity - timeless qualities that are valued even today.‎

However, in our time and on the eve of local elections, to what extent can such criteria be a guide for voters?‎

"These are requirements according to their time, which nowadays and given the political mores are almost impossible", answers Yordan Minchev, author of the internet platform "Na Megdana". "These are permanent qualities, only we have turned them from their other side. For example, back in the day, to be ``financially wealthy,'' a person had to set aside money, property, and livestock. While with us, most people harbor the hope of becoming financially wealthy only after they sit on the given chair and at some point they themselves indicate who should sit on that same chair."

According to Yordan Minchev, there are smart and well-read people in elected positions, but sometimes you feel sad watching them descend to a lower level - whether to be understood or to make an impression. ‎

"To be polite, to be attentive, not to be loud", he recalls another criterion in the past. "When you see how they call each other in the plenary hall in rude street language, as far it becomes clear to you that the incompetence has always been loud. Otherwise, it has no way of being heard, and maybe that's what it's counting on."

Grounded in the insultingly mundane problems of the 21st century, voters are hardly looking for sophistication, good manners and family spirit in solving their prosaic problems. Here are the voices of some of them in the regional city of Shumen:

"I am an employer - how can I bring people to work when there are no convenient bus transport links between the villages? This means that I need to allocate a resource given that the municipality is supposed to take care of these things," says one citizen.

"In the hospital, everything has to be fixed, because no one pays attention to anyone. My wife is pregnant and we had to wait 3 hours in the emergency room for her to be admitted with stomach pains. I can also say about KAT-Shumen - I got a driver's license here, but I changed it in Germany because it was broken. And since I want to stay in Bulgaria, I went for a duplicate, but they sent me to Germany to restore my rights."‎

"My expectations are zero because everyone is looking to steal money. We pay insurance, vignettes and absolutely nothing changes. Two persons blew a tire yesterday in front of me. Everything is the mayor's fault - if he doesn't do anything, there is no one else who can," says a Shumen resident.‎

"We can't go out safely with a baby stroller because we don't have sidewalks," says a young mother from Shumen. "Yesterday we didn't have water again - apart from the fact that it is very expensive, we don't use it for anything other than the most minimal needs. I sterilized every single bottle for the baby extra because it was muddy and I was scared."

"It is very difficult to find a job, especially for young people like me. I haven't succeeded for 4 months now, because employers require an internship, but you can't get it when you've just graduated," says a 25-year-old girl from Shumen.

‎"Is there an education system at all, in your opinion? Do you see the yongsters?" a citizen asks rhetorically and continues: "For me, the state of the education system is the worst. Healthcare - what are we doing? This is a national problem. The ignorance and foolishness that is spreading all around, it again depends on those in power," summarizes a citizen.‎

Unfortunately for the citizens, a large part of the presented problems depend on the people in the authorities so they should vote sensibly in the upcoming local vote on October 29. Yordan Minchev ‎offers his scale of assessment by which he evaluates whom to choose for the positions of power.

"I listen very carefully to what the candidates are saying," he says. "I don't want them to talk to me in the future tense. When they speak to me in the present tense, it becomes clear to me what the future will be. The more they promise me in the future, ‎the further down they fall in the assessment scale.”‎

Yordan Minchev ends with an axiom, which it is high time that we finally destroyed:

"A person who lies cannot be a good mayor. But if he doesn't lie, he can't become mayor. And we have accepted that and we tell each other about it, we say it smilingly, we laugh at it and at the same moment we vote for exactly such people", says Yordan Minchev.

How do Bulgarians elect their governing figures

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Compiled by Diana Tsankova (based on interviews of Zdravka Ruseva and Aishe Lyatif from BNR's Radio Shumen)

Photos: Radio Shumen, Simona Alexieva, archive

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Local elections 2023

How do Bulgarians elect their governing figures

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