Prime Minister Rosen Zeliazkov announced today the resignation of his government, after weeks of protests against the country’s economic policies and the government’s failure – as protesters complain – to fight corruption.
Zhelyazhkov announced his resignation in a televised speech minutes before a scheduled vote in Parliament on a no-confidence motion against the government.
The resignation comes shortly before Bulgaria joins the Eurozone on January 1.
How did we get to resignation?
The Zhelyazhkov government took office in January 2025, based on a coalition that included Boyko Borisov’s GERB-UDF – the largest parliamentary group –, the Socialist Party–United Left coalition, the populist ITN party and the ARF, close to Akhmed Dogan.
The ARF then withdrew as it became apparent that the real influence in the government belonged to the more powerful Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning party of Delian Pefski, who is under sanctions for corruption. Although Pefsky’s party did not officially participate in the government, his support was crucial to its preservation.
In recent months, the informal governing majority, led by Borisov and Pefsky, has been the target of mass protests inside and outside Bulgaria. The demonstrations were initially organized by the opposition coalition “Continuing Change – Democratic Bulgaria” against controversial provisions of the initial 2026 budget, but soon attracted widespread support from citizens protesting corruption and abuse of power.
The Zhelyazhkov government survived six impeachment motions in less than a year, but it was mass participation in the protests that ultimately led to its resignation.
What Zhelyazhkov said
In a televised address on Dec. 11, Zeliazkov said: “Power comes from the sovereign (s.a. people),” using a term that in Bulgaria refers to the electorate. “We listen to the voice of the citizens. Their request is the resignation of the government.”
He emphasized that the government was the product of a complex alliance of parties that agreed that Bulgaria should remain fully integrated into the European Union. “We promised macroeconomic stability and we achieved it, we promised an increase in budget revenues and we achieved it. We proposed a budget for social protection and benefits for 2026. However, it seems that it has not been possible to explain all this sufficiently,” he said.
