Boiko Borisov
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Boyko Metodiev Borisov ( bg, Бойко Методиев Борисов, ; born 13 June 1959) is a Bulgarian politician who served as the
prime minister of Bulgaria The prime minister of Bulgaria ( bg, Министър-председател, Ministar-predsedatel) is the head of government of Bulgaria. They are the leader of a political coalition in the Bulgarian parliament – known as the National Assemb ...
from 2009 to 2013, 2014 to 2017, and 2017 to 2021, making him Bulgaria's second-longest serving prime minister to date. Borisov was elected
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
of
Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
in 2005. In December 2005, he was the founding chairman of the conservative political party
Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria GERB ( bg, ГЕРБ, translation=coat of arms, acronym for Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria) is a conservative, populist political party which was the ruling party of Bulgaria between 2009 and 2021. History GERB is headed by for ...
(GERB), becoming its lead candidate in the 2009 general election. Borisov led GERB to a landslide victory in 2009, defeating the incumbent
Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...
, and resigned as mayor of Sofia to be sworn in as Prime Minister. He resigned in 2013, after nationwide protests against the government's energy policy, but after leading GERB to victory in the 2014 general election, he became Prime Minister again. His second term ended similarly to his first, after Borisov resigned in January 2017, this time following GERB's defeat in the 2016 presidential election. As before, Borisov led GERB to election victory again in the snap 2017 general election, becoming Prime Minister for a third time. Under Borisov's cabinets Bulgaria saw improved macroeconomic stability while remaining the EU's poorest member, with nearly a quarter of its population below national
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
s.
Foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct co ...
fell and rampant corruption have led as recently as June 2019 to repeated rejection of Bulgaria's attempts to join the
Schengen Area The Schengen Area ( , ) is an area comprising 27 European countries that have officially abolished all passport and all other types of border control at their mutual borders. Being an element within the wider area of freedom, security and j ...
. Electoral results for Borisov and his party were overshadowed by allegations of
fraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compens ...
and manipulation in
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
,
2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
, and in 2019 both
locally In mathematics, a mathematical object is said to satisfy a property locally, if the property is satisfied on some limited, immediate portions of the object (e.g., on some ''sufficiently small'' or ''arbitrarily small'' neighborhoods of points). P ...
and for the
European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the 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 adopts ...
. Judicial threats and attacks against journalists increased to the point where journalism in Bulgaria became "dangerous" according to
Reporters Without Borders Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...
, which ranked Bulgaria 111th globally in press freedom in 2019. Former U.S. ambassador to Bulgaria James Pardew said in 2019 that a "national political environment with little government or criminal accountability and no serious opposition to challenge the current government" was in place as a result of collusion, corruption and stifling of the media under Borisov. On March 17th, 2022, Borisov was detained after allegations of misuse of EU funds. He was released after spending 24 hours in prison. In 2013, while Prime Minister, Borisov became the oldest person ever to play for a Bulgarian professional club when he appeared for
FC Vitosha Bistritsa FC Vitosha ( bg, ФК Витоша) is a Bulgarian association football club based in Bistritsa, Sofia City Province, which competes in the Second League, the second tier of Bulgarian football. It is named after the Vitosha mountain range, where ...
in the
B Group The Bulgarian Second Professional Football League ( bg, Втора професионална футболна лига, Vtora Profesionalna Futbolna Liga), also known as Second League ( bg, Втора Лига) or Vtora liga, is the second level ...
, the second division of Bulgarian football.


Early life and family

Borisov was born in 1959 in
Bankya Bankya ( bg, Банкя ) is a small town located on the outskirts of Sofia in western Bulgaria. It is administratively part of Greater Sofia. The district is famous for the mineral springs and baths that have been used for medicinal purposes fo ...
(then a village, today a town, part of
Stolichna Municipality The Stolichna Municipality ( bg, Столична община, lit=Capital Municipality, translit=Stolichna obshtina (also transcribed as Stolična obština)) is an obshtina (''municipality'') in Sofia City Province, Western Bulgaria. It is name ...
) to the Ministry of Internal Affairs official Metodi Borisov and elementary school teacher Veneta Borisova. Borisov has claimed that his grandfather was executed by the communists for being a
Nikola Petkov Nikola Dimitrov Petkov ( bg, Никола Димитров Петков; July 8, 1893 – September 23, 1947) was a Bulgarian politician, one of the leaders of the Bulgarian Agrarian National Union (usually abbreviated as BZNS). He entered polit ...
supporter in the wake of the
Bulgarian coup d'état of 1944 Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...
. This has been disputed, however, as Nikola Petkov was still an ally of the communist insurgents in 1944. Furthermore, Borisov's later rise within the ranks of communist-era security services would have been unlikely with such family background. Other sources point that Borisov's grandfather either died during a criminal incident, or that both his grandfathers died peacefully in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1977, Borisov graduated from Bankya's high school with excellent grades. Between 1982 and 1990, he assumed different positions in the Ministry of Internal Affairs as a firefighter and later as a professor at the Police Academy in Sofia. As a National Security Office member, Borisov took part in the protection of crops and haylofts during the name-changing campaign towards ethnic Turks in the 1980s. From 1985 to 1990, Borisov was a lecturer at the Higher Institute for Police Officers Training and Scientific Research of the Ministry of Interior. Borisov quit the Ministry in 1991 with the rank of major, after formally refusing to renounce his Communist Party membership, or "depoliticise". In 1991, he founded a private security company, Ipon-1. He subsequently became bodyguard to Bulgaria's last communist leader,
Todor Zhivkov Todor Hristov Zhivkov ( bg, Тодор Христов Живков ; 7 September 1911 – 5 August 1998) was a Bulgarian communist statesman who served as the ''de facto'' leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB) from 1954 until 1989 ...
, after the latter was overthrown in 1989, and to Simeon II. Borisov has been claiming participation in
karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...
championships since 1978, serving as the coach of the Bulgarian national team and a referee of international matches. He said to United States President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
that he has a 7th dan black belt in karate, but his coach denied this, and stated that Borisov has never been even a karate competitor, but only an administrator of the team. Borisov is divorced, but for a number of years lived with Tsvetelina Borislavova, head of Bulgarian American Credit Bank. Borisov has a daughter, Veneta, from his former marriage to the physician Stela. Borisov also has a sister, Krasimira Ivanova.


Civil servant

Boyko Borisov was the Chief Secretary of the Bulgarian Ministry of Interior between 2001 and 2005, with the rank of General. During that period, he became famous for getting the notorious mobster
Sreten Jocić Sreten Jocić ( sr-cyrl, Сретен Јоцић; born 24 October 1962), also known as Joca Amsterdam ( sr-cyr, Јоца Амстердам), is a Serbian gangster from Velika Krsna who operated in the Netherlands. He was sentenced to 15 years' im ...
apprehended. In the 2005 parliamentary elections he was a parliamentary candidate of the
National Movement Simeon II The National Movement for Stability and Progress ( bg, Национално движение за стабилност и възход, translit=Natsionalno dvizhenie za stabilnost i vazhod, NDSV) is a liberal, populist political party in Bulgari ...
; he was elected in two regions but decided to retain his job as Chief Secretary of the Ministry. Later in 2005, he resigned from that post, instead of standing as a candidate in the mayoral election in Sofia. He was elected as
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
and succeeded Stefan Sofiyanski. He was re-elected in the 2007 election.


First term as Prime Minister of Bulgaria

Borisov's party GERB also won the
parliamentary election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
on 5 July 2009 by collecting 39.72% of the popular vote and 117 of the 240 seats in parliament. Since 27 July 2009 Borisov served as Prime Minister of Bulgaria in a GERB-dominated centre-right
minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...
with parliamentary support from three other parliamentary groups, including the nationalist party
Ataka Ataka may refer to: * Attack (political party), Bulgarian nationalist political party *Ataka (play), a Japanese play used as a source for the film ''The Men Who Tread On the Tiger's Tail'' *9M120 Ataka, a Russian-made anti-tank guided missile * Japa ...
. He invited several non-party affiliated experts to the government, most prominent among them
Simeon Dyankov Simeon Dyankov ( bg, Симеон Дянков, also Djankov; born July 13, 1970) is a Bulgarian economist. From 2009 to 2013, he was the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Bulgaria in the government of Boyko Borisov. Prior to hi ...
, a former high-ranking
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
official, and
Rosen Plevneliev Rosen Asenov Plevneliev ( bg, Росен Асенов Плевнелиев ; born 14 May 1964) is a Bulgarian politician who was the 4th President of Bulgaria, holding the position from January 2012 to January 2017. He was the Minister of Region ...
, manager of a large German subsidiary in Bulgaria.


Domestic policy

Borisov's stated policies were mostly aimed at curbing corruption in the public administration and building an adequate infrastructure. One of the main goals in this direction was the expansion of the national motorway network, of which Lyulin was the first motorway to be completed. The government also approved a strategy for the development of the energy sector until 2020, which includes the completion of gas interconnectors with
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
,
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, and
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
and expanding renewable energy capacities. The Borisov government stopped the
Belene Nuclear Power Plant The Belene Nuclear Power Plant ( bg, Атомна електроцентрала „Белене“) is a planned nuclear power plant 3 km from Belene and 11 km from Svishtov in Pleven Province, northern Bulgaria, near the Danube River. ...
project after the
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster The was a nuclear accident in 2011 at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan. The proximate cause of the disaster was the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, which occurred on the afternoon of 11 March 2011 and ...
. The acquisition of European funds has increased from 2.6% to 20%. Specialized police actions have tackled corruption in the administration and a number of high-profile members of the organized crime have been imprisoned, though as of May 2011 there was little improvement in the rule of law. At the same time the government has been criticized by other EU members for the erosion of media freedom, falling attractiveness to investors and continuing mafia activities. These criticisms were repeatedly leveled against Deputy Prime Minister
Tzvetan Tzvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
, who is formally under investigation for wiretapping members of the government and parliament. During his trial, his actions were found to be justified. Media leaks raised suspicions that Borisov may have tried to interfere in the case. According to ''France24'', "Once in power, he toured the country incessantly to inaugurate infrastructure projects but failed to enact structural reforms or to tackle the rampant corruption and organized crime that Brussels has long complained about". In January 2011 ''Euractive'' wrote, "The ineffective judiciary has been largely unable to send to jail any high-profile criminals". Borisov is a strong supporter of the total
smoking ban Smoking bans, or smoke-free laws, are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, that prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. The spaces most commonly affected by smoking bans are indoor work ...
. Although initially removing the ban introduced by the previous government, the Borisov Cabinet reintroduced it in 2012 with the aim to reduce the number of smokers from 40% of the population to about 15–20%. By 2013, the ban had led to a 3-4% decrease in cigarette sales. Following public opposition, Borisov's government banned
hydraulic fracturing Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frack ...
for
shale gas Shale gas is an unconventional natural gas that is found trapped within shale formations. Since the 1990s a combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing has made large volumes of shale gas more economical to produce, and some a ...
exploration and extraction. A permit granted to
Chevron Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to: Science and technology * Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines * Chevron (anatomy), a bone * '' Eulithis testata'', a moth * Chevron (geology), a fold in rock ...
for shale gas exploration was revoked, and any violation of the ban is subject to a 100 million leva ($58 million) fine. Protests of doctors and other health professionals broke out in 2010 over failure to reform the health care sector, resulting in delayed payments and salaries. In March 2010, health minister Bozhidar Nanev resigned over a
conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...
scandal. He was replaced by Anna-Maria Borisova, whom Boyko Borisov met accidentally on an intersection near
Veliko Tarnovo Veliko Tarnovo ( bg, Велико Търново, Veliko Tărnovo, ; "Great Tarnovo") is a town in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred as the "''City of the Tsars''", Veliko Tarnovo ...
and decided was fit to carry out the reform. She resigned a mere six months later, failing to implement any reforms.


Resignation

Following the eruption of nationwide
protests A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...
on 12 February 2013 over high energy costs, low living standards and corruption, Borisov and his government resigned on 20 February. Before that, Borisov had accepted the resignation of Finance Minister
Simeon Djankov Simeon Dyankov ( bg, Симеон Дянков, also Djankov; born July 13, 1970) is a Bulgarian economist. From 2009 to 2013, he was the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Bulgaria in the government of Boyko Borisov. Prior to hi ...
after a dispute over farm subsidies and promised a cut in power prices and punishing foreign-owned companies—a potential risk in damaging Bulgaria-Czech Republic relations—but protests continued. He then said: "I will not participate in a government under which police are beating people." The
election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
due in summer was rescheduled for 12 May 2013. Djankov's resignation was a blow to Borisov's center-right credentials, since Djankov spearheaded the reforms during their term in office. He was also regarded as able manager of the public administration. In 2013 Djankov became an adjunct lecturer in public policy at the
Harvard Kennedy School The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
and was appointed Rector of the New Economic School in Moscow. The
European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...
expressed support for Borisov a month before the 2013 parliamentary elections. Later in April, Borisov's former Agriculture minister
Miroslav Naydenov Miroslav Hristoforov Naydenov, also sometimes spelled as Naidenov ( bg, Мирослав Христофоров Найденов ) was a Bulgarian politician of the GERB party and former Minister of Agriculture and Forestry (2009–2013) in t ...
revealed that the government had spied on several cabinet ministers, business figures and the opposition under orders of
Tsvetan Tsvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
, deputy chairman of GERB. Several members of parliament corroborated these claims, as well as members of the wiretapping unit in the Interior Ministry.


Second term as Prime Minister of Bulgaria


Domestic policy

During Borisov's second government, the business climate and promised reforms took a nosedive. "Reforms failed to get off the ground, in particular, changes to the justice system and plans to help cash-strapped schools and the creaking health care system". Additionally, Bulgaria's parliament rejected an anti-corruption law. The cultivation of
genetically modified crops Genetically modified crops (GM crops) are plants used in agriculture, the DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering methods. Plant genomes can be engineered by physical methods or by use of ''Agrobacterium'' for the delivery of ...
was banned in 2015.


Foreign policy

Borisov's government saw the cancellation of the
South Stream South Stream (russian: Южный поток, Yuzhnyy potok; bg, Южен поток, Yuzhen potok; sr, / ; sl, Južni tok; hu, Déli Áramlat; it, Flusso Meridionale) was a canceled pipeline project to transport natural gas of the Russia ...
gas pipeline project.
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the larges ...
lobbied for the pipeline's construction, which would have circumvented existing, insecure gas pipelines passing through
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
, and would have continued into Central Europe. Borisov's government instead emphasized an interconnector link with
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
,
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
,
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
and
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, to redistribute
natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
from multiple sources. A fence was built along the border with Turkey to stem the flow of migrants during the
European migrant crisis The 2015 European migrant crisis, also known internationally as the Syrian refugee crisis, was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe in 2015, when 1.3 million people came to the continent to reques ...
. Border control was also tightened. Some 17,000 people were detained by October 2016, down by more than a third compared to 2015. A riot broke out in a migrant camp near
Harmanli Harmanli ( bg, Харманли , tr, Harmanlı) is a town in Haskovo Province, south-central Bulgaria. It is the administrative centre of the eponymous Harmanli Municipality. Near the site of Hamanli in Late Antiquity, during the early 4th- ...
in 2016, prompting a police response with water cannons and rubber bullets, and later a closure of the camp.


Third term as Prime Minister of Bulgaria

After the 2017 parliamentary elections, Borisov became Prime Minister again, beginning his third term in this position. On 27 April, President Rumen Radev handed Borisov the mandate for the forming of Bulgaria's new government.
Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was estab ...
wrote, "Bulgaria's centre-right GERB party signed a coalition agreement on Thursday /27/17with a nationalist alliance that will bring former prime minister Boiko Borisov back to power for his third term since 2009". By 2018,
foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct co ...
had collapsed to 2% of GDP, or $1.13 billion. A number of major foreign companies, including E.ON,
Modern Times Group Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosoph ...
,
ČEZ Group ČEZ Group ( cs, 'Skupina ČEZ' České Energetické Závody) is a conglomerate of 96 companies (including the parent company ČEZ, a.s.), 72 of them in the Czech Republic. Its core business is the generation, distribution, trade in, and sales o ...
,
Société Générale Société Générale S.A. (), colloquially known in English as SocGen (), is a French-based multinational financial services company founded in 1864, registered in downtown Paris and headquartered nearby in La Défense. Société Générale ...
and
Telenor Telenor ASA ( or ) is a Norwegian majority state-owned multinational telecommunications company headquartered at Fornebu in Bærum, close to Oslo. It is one of the world's largest mobile telecommunications companies with operations worldwide, ...
initiated their withdrawal from the Bulgarian market either due to poor profitability or corruption and government interference. In June 2018, a public tender was launched to build the natural gas interconnector link with Turkey. Borisov's plan to build a Balkan Gas Hub near
Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city in Bulgaria **Varna Province **Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna **Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis *Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy *Varniai, a city in Lithuania * Varna (Šaba ...
aims to ensure competition between Russian gas supplies from
TurkStream TurkStream ( tr, TürkAkım or ''Türk Akımı'', russian: Турецкий поток; former name: Turkish Stream) is a natural gas pipeline running from Russia to Turkey. It starts from Russkaya compressor station near Anapa in Russia's Krasnod ...
,
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
i gas and
liquefied natural gas Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled down to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volu ...
(LNG) delivered via Greece. However, analyst Vasko Nachev noted that the gas connection to Greece is not linked to any transiting gas pipelines and that the anticipated new delivery routes are "non-existent". During a regional summit, Borisov announced that Bulgaria will participate in a joint bid for the 2030 FIFA World Cup and the
UEFA Euro 2028 The 2028 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2028 or simply Euro 2028, will be the 18th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international football championship organised by UEFA for the senior men's nat ...
with Serbia, Romania and Greece. Borisov received Order of the Republic of Serbia in February 2019. He thanked the Serbian president in the name of Bulgarian people, promised to further help Serbian EU agenda and the overall relations of the two neighboring states. In March 2019, a journalist investigation revealed that real estate company Arteks had sold a luxury property at prices sharply lower than the market value to a number of senior government officials. These include justice minister
Tsetska Tsacheva Tsetska Tsacheva Dangovska ( bg, Цецка Цачева Данговска; born 24 May 1958) is a Bulgarian politician from GERB and a jurist. She was the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Bulgaria from 4 May 2017 to 5 April 2019. She had p ...
, GERB deputy chairman Tsvetan Tsvetanov and deputy sports minister Vanya Koleva, who all subsequently resigned. Deputy Energy minister Krasimir Parvanov, Supreme Judicial Council member Gergana Mutafova and GERB MP
Vezhdi Rashidov Vezhdi Letif Rashidov ( bg, Вежди Летиф Рашидов, tr, Vecdi Latif Raşidoğlu; born 14 December 1951) is a Bulgarian duffer sculptor, GERB politician and was a Minister of Culture of Bulgaria (2009–2013; 2014–2017) who is the ...
had also obtained sub-market price real estate from Arteks. Additionally, anti-corruption commission head Plamen Georgiev, National Investigative Service head
Borislav Sarafov Borislav or Boryslav (Cyrillic script: Борислав) is a Slavic male given name. People who have this name include: * Borislav Cvetković, a Croatian-born Serbian football manager and former player *Borislav Ivanov, a Bulgarian chess playe ...
and tourism minister
Nikolina Angelkova Nikolina Angelkova ( bg, Николина Ангелкова) (born 30 November 1979) is a Bulgarian politician who was the Minister of Tourism from 4 May 2017 to 23 July 2020, and has also served as the Minister of Tourism from November 2014 to J ...
were implicated in similar schemes. Another journalist investigation also revealed that, back in 2015, the anti-corruption commission under Plamen Georgiev had terminated an investigation into irregularities in Tsvetan Tsvetanov's declared revenue and real estate evaluations. Further investigations revealed that Borisov's deputy economy minister, Aleksandar Manolev, built a private dwelling using funds from an EU development program. Numerous similar estates, built as
bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...
houses using EU funds, were revealed to have been used as private property in a similar manner. Overall, 749 guesthouses were revealed to have been built under the programme since 2007. The Attorney General's office launched an investigation following the reports. Borisov's government received further criticism for its handling of
African swine fever virus ''African swine fever virus'' (ASFV) is a large, double-stranded DNA virus in the '' Asfarviridae'' family. It is the causative agent of African swine fever (ASF). The virus causes a hemorrhagic fever with high mortality rates in domestic pigs; ...
outbreaks which caused the culling of tens of thousands of pigs in several regions in July 2019. EU Health and Food Safety commissioner
Vytenis Andriukaitis Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis (born 9 August 1951) is WHO Special Envoy for the European region, the former European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, a heart surgeon, a co-signatory to the 1990 Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of ...
said that Bulgaria "had not done much" to prevent the outbreak and was facing the prospect of losing its entire pig farming industry to the disease. Additionally, culled pigs were hastily buried, sometimes close to bodies of water, instead of incinerated, as the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency had previously closed down an incinerator in the affected region. In October 2019, Borisov urged European Union to stop its criticism of
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, adding that Bulgaria's relations with Turkey are good-neighbourly. Several days later on 15 October, Bulgaria turned harsher, condemning the Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria and firmly insisting that it immediately stop. On 25 October 2020, Borisov tested positive for
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. He said on
Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
that he had "general malaise." By 10 November, he had made a recovery from the disease. While Bulgaria initially reacted quickly by taking strong measures against COVID-19 in March 2020, Borisov's handling of the pandemic subsequently drew sharp criticism as the country was severely affected during the autumn months after a loosening of restrictions over the course of the summer season.


Rivalry with President Radev

Borisov spent much of his term locked in an institutional war with President
Rumen Radev Rumen Georgiev Radev ( bg, Румен Георгиев Радев ; born 18 June 1963) is a Bulgarian politician and former major general who is the current president of Bulgaria since 22 January 2017. Radev previously served as higher command ...
, the latter an opposition-sponsored independent and former Air Force General that defeated Borisov's preferred candidate in the
2016 Bulgarian presidential election Presidential elections were held in Bulgaria on 6 November 2016, alongside a referendum on changes to the electoral system and political party funding. The second round was held on 13 November 2016, resulting in the victory of Rumen Radev. Ele ...
. The two became bitter rivals, accusing each other of leading the country into crisis. This would eventually lead to President Radev supporting the 2020-2021 protests against Borisov's government.


Controversies


Allegations of corruption and connections with organized crime

Periodically ensuing corruption scandals and controversies has led to reports of high levels of corruption in Borisov's government. According to the
Corruption Perceptions Index The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is an index which ranks countries "by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys." The CPI generally defines corruption as an "abuse of entru ...
, compiled by Transparency International, Borisov's government was as corrupt as previous governments, with two of his closest ministers –
Tzvetan Tzvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
and
Miroslav Naydenov Miroslav Hristoforov Naydenov, also sometimes spelled as Naidenov ( bg, Мирослав Христофоров Найденов ) was a Bulgarian politician of the GERB party and former Minister of Agriculture and Forestry (2009–2013) in t ...
—investigated by the Prosecutor General and the Tax Authority for taking bribes while in office. Borisov has nonetheless campaigned on an anti-corruption message. Despite Borisov's initial promise, no representative of previous cabinets has so far been convicted. Bokyo Borisov was accused of mafia ties by former ambassador to Bulgaria
John Beyrle John Ross Beyrle (born February 11, 1954) is an American diplomat. A career Foreign Service Officer and specialist in Russian and Eastern European affairs, he served as List of Ambassadors of the United States to Russia, Ambassador of the United S ...
in 2006, in a leaked memo published by Wikileaks, of facilitating and covering up illegal deals with LUKOIL and trafficking methamphetamines, In 2007 Boyko Borisov was accused by the magazine ''U.S. Congressional Quarterly'' (CQ) of being directly linked to the biggest mobsters in Bulgaria. CQ asserted that, "the most powerful politician in Bulgaria, Washington's newest ally in the global war on terror, is a close associate of known mobsters and linked to almost 30 unsolved murders in the Black Sea republic." According to a confidential report compiled by former top U.S. law enforcement agency officials Borisov had used his position as the Chief Secretary of the Bulgarian Interior Ministry to help organized crime bosses attack their opponents. On 14 January 2011, journalists from the Bulgarian weekly newspaper ''Galeria'' distributed audio records of an alleged conversation between Borisov and Customs Agency Head Vanyo Tanov. The tapes reveal that Borisov instructed customs authorities to immediately stop their investigation of "Ledenika" brewery which had been suspected of illegal activities and tax crimes. However, Finance Minister
Simeon Djankov Simeon Dyankov ( bg, Симеон Дянков, also Djankov; born July 13, 1970) is a Bulgarian economist. From 2009 to 2013, he was the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Bulgaria in the government of Boyko Borisov. Prior to hi ...
was recorded on tape ordering the Head of Customs to do his work properly and not yield to Borisov's demands. This created a rift within the government, as it was widely believed that the wiretapping was ordered by Interior Minister
Tzvetan Tzvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
. Later those tapes were declared "manipulated" (not being able to tell if they were fake or not) by two independent examinations. In early July, Borisov admitted that the conversation had been genuine, though tampered with, while giving an interview to Bulgarian bloggers in the presence of the Interior Minister. A March 2013 investigation by the Prosecutor General suggests that the wire-tapping was ordered by
Tzvetan Tzvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
, Borisov's trusted deputy in the GERB party, with the aim of getting rid of Customs Head Vanyo Tanov. Corruption has spread under his government, making Bulgaria the European Union's worst-ranked country by the NGO Transparency International. The Prime Minister and his entourage are said to have benefited in particular from a system of misappropriation of European structural funds allocated for the construction of highways. Political scientist Evgenii Dainov says: " oïko Borissovhas imposed the feudal structure of a gang of which he is the boss, with his lieutenants around him and local chiefs, some of whom have criminal records. Their goal: to make private profit from public funds." Despite the disclosure of compromising documents, such as audio recordings or photos taken by one of his mistresses showing numerous bundles of 500-euro bills in a drawer, the Bulgarian justice system has never opened an investigation into the matter.


Allegations of threatening journalists

In early 2011 a number of think-tanks and analysts raised concern about the degradation of
media freedom Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerci ...
and transparency in Bulgaria. In 2011 reports surfaced that Borisov had paid cash to journalists to portray him favourably, and threatened others who criticized him as early as 2005. In 2012, Bulgaria was ranked as the worst-performing EU member in terms of media freedom, according to
Freedom House Freedom House is a non-profit, majority U.S. government funded organization in Washington, D.C., that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom, and human rights. Freedom House was founded in October 1941, and Wendell Wil ...
, and ranked 80th internationally. By 2018, Bulgaria had dropped to 111th globally in the
Press Freedom Index The Press Freedom Index is an annual ranking of countries compiled and published by Reporters Without Borders since 2002 based upon the organisation's own assessment of the countries' press freedom records in the previous year. It intends to ...
, lower than all European Union members and membership candidate states. According to
Reporters Without Borders Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...
, EU funds have been diverted to sympathetic media outlets while others have been bribed to be less critical on problematic topics. Attacks against individual journalists have also increased.


Allegations of racism and xenophobia

On 6 February 2009, Borisov, speaking in Chicago, told Bulgarian expatriates that the human material and the basis of Bulgarian population at that moment included 1 million
Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
, 700,000
Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic o ...
and 2.5 million
retiree A pensioner is a person who receives a pension, most commonly because of retirement from the workforce. This is a term typically used in the United Kingdom (along with OAP, initialism of old-age pensioner), Ireland and Australia where someone of p ...
s. He added that the human material that they are left with as voters and as a pool for recruiting staff is really not that big, as half a million people have left Bulgaria.Sofia Mayor to Bulgarian Expats: We Are Left with Bad Human Material Back Home
Sofia Mayor to Bulgarian Expats: We Are Left with Bad Human Material Back Home
Vice-president of the
Party of European Socialists The Party of European Socialists (PES) is a social democratic and progressive European political party. The PES comprises national-level political parties from all member states of the European Union (EU) plus Norway and the United Kingdom ...
,
Jan Marinus Wiersma Jan Marinus Wiersma (born 26 August 1951 in Groningen) is a Dutch politician and from 1994 to 2009 Member of the European Parliament. He is a member of the Labour Party, vice-chair of the Party of European Socialists group, and sits on the Europ ...
, accused Borisov of referring to the Turks, Roma and pensioners in Bulgaria as "bad human material," and claimed that GERB "has already crossed the invisible line between right wing populism and extremism." Borisov denied these accusations and in turn accused the
Bulgarian Socialist Party The Bulgarian Socialist Party ( bg, Българска социалистическа партия, translit=Balgarska sotsialisticheska partiya, BSP), also known as The Centenarian ( bg, Столетницата, links=no, translit=Stoletnitsat ...
of attempting to discredit him. Borisov stated in a meeting with NGOs on 5 March 2009 that he intends to include representatives of the Roma ethnicity in all levels of government, including a potential minister, and has reached out to offer inclusivity to Bulgaria's ethnic Turkish population; although these measures and proposals have been seen as politically empty.


Image

Boyko Borisov's "man of the people" attitude and the failings of the previous government were seen as the main sources of his popularity in 2009. Borisov had also marked a very wide media presence, being regularly cited in most major media outlets and had made a total of 1,157 statements from his election until the end of 2010. This trend continued throughout his first mandate, as Borisov and his party completely dominate the country's media reports, his name being mentioned in more than 8,000 news articles for 2012. He has also been the subject of a number of sycophantic plaudits on the part of his supporters, including a poem lauding his "dignified leadership". In July 2012, he was included as a "historical personality" in history books for high school students, along with former GERB minister
Rosen Plevneliev Rosen Asenov Plevneliev ( bg, Росен Асенов Плевнелиев ; born 14 May 1964) is a Bulgarian politician who was the 4th President of Bulgaria, holding the position from January 2012 to January 2017. He was the Minister of Region ...
and European commissioner
Kristalina Georgieva Kristalina Ivanova Georgieva-Kinova ( bg, Кристалина Иванова Георгиева-Кинова; ; born 13 August 1953) is a Bulgarian economist serving as managing director of the International Monetary Fund since 2019. She was t ...
. Borisov's popularity has been steadily declining due to ongoing scandals surrounding his most-trusted ministers -
Tzvetan Tzvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
and agriculture minister
Miroslav Naydenov Miroslav Hristoforov Naydenov, also sometimes spelled as Naidenov ( bg, Мирослав Христофоров Найденов ) was a Bulgarian politician of the GERB party and former Minister of Agriculture and Forestry (2009–2013) in t ...
. After a public row due to leaked wiretapped conversations between Boyko Borisov,
Miroslav Naydenov Miroslav Hristoforov Naydenov, also sometimes spelled as Naidenov ( bg, Мирослав Христофоров Найденов ) was a Bulgarian politician of the GERB party and former Minister of Agriculture and Forestry (2009–2013) in t ...
and the deputy prosecutor general, Boyko Borisov distanced himself from the former agriculture minister and he was excluded from GERB. According to political scientist Ivan Krastev, "Boyko wants to be everybody’s best friend. He wants to hear all sides, make them believe that he has taken their side. He thinks that he needs to take on all positions at once...He is more pro-American, pro-Russian and pro-European than anyone else." In December 2011, Borisov, who occasionally plays as a striker for the third division side F.C. Vitosha Bistritsa, collected 44% of about 8,000 votes in a fans' poll to crown Bulgaria's Footballer of the Year, ahead of then-
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
striker
Dimitar Berbatov Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov ( bg, Димитър Иванов Бербатов; born 30 January 1981) is a Bulgarian former professional footballer. A striker, he captained the Bulgaria national team from 2006 to 2010, and is the country's all-ti ...
. Following the result, Borisov called for the award to be annulled, claiming it was a protest vote against the poor conditions of Bulgarian football. Borisov's hardline governing style has received criticism by media outlets, described by some as
authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...
.


Susceptibility to American lobbyism

In January 2019, Bulgarian President and former Air Force Commander
Rumen Radev Rumen Georgiev Radev ( bg, Румен Георгиев Радев ; born 18 June 1963) is a Bulgarian politician and former major general who is the current president of Bulgaria since 22 January 2017. Radev previously served as higher command ...
levied heavy criticism against Borisov, saying he "perverted" the tender for the acquisition of new fighter jets intended to replace its ageing MiG-29s. Potential replacements were
Eurofighter Typhoon The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo ...
s, Saab Gripens, Lockheed Martin F-16s or Boeing F-18s. In December 2018, Borisov's government decided to buy F-16s, ignoring four out of the seven criteria of the tender and exceeding the financial framework. President Radev called this a "triple blow against Bulgaria," adding that the Americans should realise they only won the tender via lobbyism.


Image controversy and popular protest

In June 2020, photographs emerged that purported to show what appeared to be Prime Minister Borisov laying half-naked on a bed, next to a nightstand featuring a handgun and stacks of
euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
banknotes. Borisov confirmed that the room in which the photos were taken was his, but denied the gun and money, stating that the images could have been manipulated. Borisov accused President
Rumen Radev Rumen Georgiev Radev ( bg, Румен Георгиев Радев ; born 18 June 1963) is a Bulgarian politician and former major general who is the current president of Bulgaria since 22 January 2017. Radev previously served as higher command ...
of flying a consumer drone into his residence in order to take the pictures. He also accused former
Ombudswoman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...
Maya Manolova Maya Bozhidarova Manolova ( bg, Мая Божидарова Манолова; born 4 May 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and the leader of the political movement Stand Up.BG, part of the Stand Up! Mafia, get out! coalition. She was formerly the v ...
, TV star
Slavi Trifonov Stanislav Todorov Trifonov ( bg, Станислав Тодоров Трифонов; born 18 October 1966), known as Slavi Trifonov ( bg, Слави Трифонов), is a Bulgarian TV host, musician and politician. Trifonov is mainly active i ...
and his own former second in command
Tsvetan Tsvetanov Tsvetan Genchev Tsvetanov ( bg, Цветан Генчев Цветанов; born 8 April 1965) is a Bulgarian politician and former government official. A former security deputy mayor of Sofia, he was, until 2009, the chairman of the GERB party. ...
(who had just left and condemned the ruling party) of involvement in a plot to take photos of him while he was sleeping in a "KGB-Style"
kompromat (russian: links=no, компромат, short for "compromising material") is damaging information about a politician, a businessperson, or other public figure, which may be used to create negative publicity, as well as for blackmail, often to ...
operation. Radev condemned the leaks and called it an "insane" invasion of the prime minister's privacy. He added that he owns a drone, but that the accusation that he personally piloted it into the prime minister's residence to take pictures was part of Borisov's "fantasy and paranoia". A leaked audio recording was also posted on the internet, in which a voice that strongly resembled Borisov's spoke in very brass tones and insulted a 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 repre ...
, as well as various European leaders. These scandals, along with an intrusion by the
Prosecutor General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
into the Bulgarian Presidency triggered the
2020–2021 Bulgarian protests The 2020–2021 Bulgarian protests were a series of demonstrations that were being held in Bulgaria, mainly in the capital Sofia, as well as cities with a large Bulgarian diaspora, such as Brussels, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, Berlin and London. The ...
that sought the resignations of Borisov, his government and the Prosecutor General.


References


Bibliography

*


External links


CityMayors profile
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Borisov, Boyko 1959 births Bulgarian conservatives Bulgarian footballers Bulgarian male karateka Bulgarian police officers Chiefs of police FC Vitosha Bistritsa players GERB politicians Living people Mayors of Sofia Members of the National Assembly (Bulgaria) People from Sofia City Province Prime Ministers of Bulgaria Recipients of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary Association football forwards Bulgarian sportsperson-politicians