People's Voice () 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 river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

, founded by Svetoslav Vitkov in 2013.

History

The party was established in 2013 by popular Bulgarian punk and ska musician Svetoslav Vitkov just prior to the

parliamentary election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

and achieved relative success by winning 1,34% of the total vote. This result placed it as the 13th largest party in the country, with just a few weeks of campaigning and little to no financial support. The party became the first one to open its list for 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 ...

election in 2014 to all people willing to participate. Following a series of events, including public debates on European policies, a lie-detector test, and Facebook voting, the party announced its 17 candidates, with most of them having never been involved in politics before. The top two candidates were well-known -

Bulgarian Academy of Sciences The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (abbreviated BAS; , ''Bŭlgarska akademiya na naukite'', abbreviated БАН) is the National Academy of Bulgaria, established in 1869. The Academy, with headquarters in Sofia, is autonomous and consists of a S ...

member and activist Hristo Lafchiev, and political scientist and renowned football fan

Aleksandar Alekov Aleksandar Trifonov Alekov () (born 25 April 1985) is a Bulgarian public figure, a candidate for European Parliament at the 2014 elections, representing People's Voice. He was nominated second on the electoral list of People's Voice after part ...

. The party soon became known for its provocative, fun and socially open rhetoric, including penalty shoot-outs with other politicians and scandalous video clips. At the

European Parliament elections Elections to the European Parliament take place every five years by Universal suffrage, universal adult suffrage; with more than 400 million people eligible to vote, they are the second largest democratic elections in the world after Electio ...

in May 2014, People's Voice placed 9th with 1,002% of the vote. In the

parliamentary elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

held in October 2014, the party 37,335 votes, enough to earn it 10th place with 1.14% of the vote. People's Voice attempted to enter the 2016 presidential election, initially opting for a coalition with

The Greens The Greens or Greens may refer to: Current political parties *The Greens – The Green Alternative, Austria *Australian Greens, also known as ''The Greens'' * Greens of Andorra * The Greens (Benin) *The Greens (Bulgaria) * Greens of Bosnia and He ...

. Their candidate for president was Svetoslav Vitkov, while his running-mate was Ivan Velkov, a Deputy Chairman of the municipal councilor in Sofia. However, on October 5, 2016 their registration in the elections was denied due to an insufficient number of signatures gathered prior to the final deadline for doing so. At the 2017 parliamentary election, People's Voice entered a coalition with the

Reformist Bloc The Reformist Bloc () was a centre-right electoral alliance in Bulgaria. History The coalition agreement to form the alliance was signed on 20 December 2013. The five parties that signed the agreement were: Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria, Bulga ...

, with Vitkov announced as the top candidate for the 25th electoral district, one of three that comprise the capital Sofia. The party announced that it would be contesting the 2023 parliamentary election, despite their disappointment with previous election results, justifying it by saying that a "true change" as was hoped for in the 90s is needed.

Election results

National Assembly

European Parliament

References

{{Political parties in Bulgaria

External links

Official website
(in Bulgarian) Political parties in Bulgaria Political parties established in 2013 2013 establishments in Bulgaria