Well on October 24th the Mayor elections are to be held. Have any of you living in villages had any candidates visiting to discuss village problems and what the candidate proposes to do about them? Today, one of the candidates for the Mayor of Veliko Turnovo came and the Brits were invited to attend which I, as usual alone, did. An interpreter was provided which was great because my Bulgarian isn't good enough to follow everything spoken at speed! He was the GERB politician and seemed a very nice man who promises to improve our bus service, find out the cost of re-opening the school (?????) and actually saw the need for somewhere to eat a simple family meal in the village. Also, to have more regular attendance from a doctor and maybe re-paint our pretty church. Several villagers volubly voiced their complaints and the candidate insisted he would fulfill all his promises and work with our excellent incumbant Mayor. He admits the financial village budget needs enlarging but is very impressed with the cleanliness of the village and all the events we manage to hold. I met him when he attended the Culinary festival in VT recently and our choir had our photograph taken with him. He was the only Mayoral Candidate to visit the event which must be a plus. I mentioned that there is a lack of publicity for foreigners about cultural events and, (as he re-instated the wonderful Opera and Ballet Festivals in VT at Tsaravetz together with the Sound and Light Show,) he said that posters should be in English as well as Bulgarian.
Well I know all candidates make promises at election time, but he was very convincing I must admit. He actually sees the potential in our village which is a step in the right direction because however many times we appear in the press or on TV we need businesses to open to provide work for younger residents to stay in the village. Or at least a more regular bus service to VT and Gorna so they could commute to work. He mentioned he would be putting this to the new Mayors of Gorna and Lyaskovetz.
What do any of you think about promises made to your village? We can but hope.

Well our Mayor asked us to fill in the forms to register our vote. I have not a problem with this. If I don't know enough about the candidates then we won't vote. We live in Bulgaria and haven't lived or voted in UK for donkeys years coming from Canada where we didn't register to vote. Our home is now in Bulgaria. Canada doesn't want to know us having been registered as 'Persons from Abroad' when we made a very brief attempt at repatriating. We are legal residents of Bulgaria so why should we worry if people know we are here or not? Too many people want their cake and eat it in my opinion but aren't prepared to do anything to help improve things. We also like and respect our Mayor so having a vote to keep him in will be a good thing as well as hopefully making new changes and having a voice.

:Good post:Like you Bigsavak, at one time we thought of repatriating to Britain and were also labelled 'persons from abroad!' We now live in Bulgaria and feel we should do all we can to help the country and village that has accepted us. Not to take it upon ourselves to try to change things, but to help in any way we can. After all, we are immigrants and we shouldn't forget this when we see the problems with immigration in other countries, not least Britain. Even if we are not taking jobs, we are here to do our best to invest in Bulgaria. As a pensioner this does not mean financially, but if our presence and involvement gives our village a higher profile in the big city then its the least we can do.
We have a very good village Mayor and I hope he stays in office and can work with the potential candidate for VT Mayor who I hope is also voted in.

Here's an interesting article about the elections it seems that these people are certainly doing their bit

Five citizens of EU countries other than Bulgaria have enter decided to enter the country's upcoming local elections as runners, it has been revealed.

Even though they do not possess Bulgarian citizenship, they are eligible for municipal council positions, a spokesperson for the Bulgarian Central Electoral Commission has reminded. Two Brits are among the candidates, while the other three are from Poland, Italy and the Netherlands.

A total of 248 citizens of EU countries other than Bulgaria have handed in applications declaring that they are willing to vote on October 23, when the local elections are scheduled, it also has been announced.

On Thursday, the Central Electoral Commission will announce the number of Bulgarians who have declared their preferred voting location outside Bulgaria for the upcoming presidential elections, also scheduled for October 23.

The written requests were automatically sent through the internet site to the respective Bulgarian diplomatic mission abroad. Embassies and Consular Offices are mandated to open a poll section if they receive 100 applications for the same location.

Excellent information and I see I got the date wrong! My memory.

Well our mayor is a drunken mess - :Very sad:Does absolutely nothing apart from sit on his butt in one of the 2 bars and drink himself into a stupor....probably with the money (I know it is only a small amount) that is for the use in the village. He has THREE helpers who also do absolutely nothing. We have had loads of problems with water supply this year (for the first time since we moved here) so one of the younger villagers complained at the municipality, the mayor was not happy about this at all and there have been many heated arguments between the two, although again he has done nothing to try to resolve the problems. A few, me included, now think it is sabotage by the previous voda maistor in the village (a good friend of the mayor!!!)... but that is a different story.

Oh! ..I must not forget to mention that just last week they painted the swings in the centre and put new scraps of wood, sorry seats, on them, and also filled in about 5% of the "
dupkas"
on the one road into the village. Before the last election they even bodged up the outside (front only!!!) of the village hall - apart from that nothing in over 4 years since I have been here. I guess the Rakia has well and truly taken hold. He drives around drunk in his car, the villagers told me from day one to keep an eye on my son if the kmet was driving.

I have said that I would be interested to stand for mayoress - but the local municipality seem to be dragging their feet (!!!) not just with me but with another suitable villager, and admittedly I probably did not persue enough!! A few have now said they just will not vote at all this year as there is no suitable person to vote for. On the bright side the mayor will be of pensionable age soon so the municipality will have no choice but to consider other options.

I am pleased to hear that there are some good mayors around, it surely must make a difference in such small communities. It is the older ones, who have lived here all their lives, just seeing their village going to rack and ruin, that I feel sorry for.

we have had 2 mayors in 5 years, the first one drafted in romanians to vote resuting in more votes than the village population :Very funny 2:i have met the current mayor once, we had a little problem and went to see him and was resolved immediately :Great:there have been improvements in the village albeit small but at least something. so i think he deserves another term of office.

On the scale of things the percentage of EU citizens isn't that great when you look at the census results, I'm sure we could all do more ? me included !! but I have to say in defence of most of us that the language is a barrier which makes it difficult to know exactly what or who your voting for.

Five citizens of the EU, but non-citizens are asked to run for municipal councilors, CEC spokesman Biser Troyanov. These are Christine Fox, a citizen of Britain, a candidate for councilor in Veliko Tarnovo, Iliana Lilova, a citizen of the Netherlands candidate for Assembly in Chiprovtsi, Derek Edward Marnie, a citizen of Britain, a candidate for councilor in Balchik Urshula Yanota Christ, candidate for Assembly in the municipality of Russi Domenico and White, a citizen of Italy - Candidate in Pazardjik. Some Bulgarian citizens have made ??names for registration issued by another citizenship. President of the Party "
The Other Bulgaria"
Bozidar Tomalev (known in the media Tomalevski) has asked the Metropolitan Municipality name registration Tomaletti Dario, a citizen of Finland. Sofia Municipal Election Commission has returned the application for registration Tomalev the name derived from his Finnish citizenship. 248 people from EU countries have applied that to vote in elections for mayor and municipal councilors. They would vote in 89 cities, which are in 59 municipalities in 18 districts. Most are in Dryanovo Elhovo Topolovgrad Pomorie said Biser Troyanov.



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[size=55:2gungtg6]The Bulgarian daily

The foreigner factor

Different foreigners, different parties – but the motivations for five non-Bulgarian EU passport holders to stand in Bulgaria’s October 23 2011 municipal elections have some similarities.

After The Sofia Echo interviewed Christine Fox, standing on a National Movement for Stability and Progress ticket in Veliko Turnovo, mass-circulation daily 24 Chassa interviewed the "
foreigner"
candidates across Bulgaria.

One, Iliana Lilova, is a Bulgarian by birth, although she has a Dutch passport after joining her parents in a move to the Netherlands when she was in her early 20s. Now 34, she is in Chiprovtsi, heading the ticket for ultra-nationalists Ataka.

Lilova, a qualified chef who worked in the retail trade in the Netherlands, told the daily that she had seen how the Dutch were taught self-esteem and fellow-feeling for their compatriots, and now she wanted to stand up for her fellow Bulgarians.

She said that she was standing as a candidate to improve service in the municipal administration, saying that she was discontent to hear people complain about local officialdom.

"
In the Netherlands, if you need a quick decision for the benefit of someone, the official will take no longer than the end of the working day to resolve a case. There, the administration is more open and flexible."


Lilova said that an Ataka-led municipal council would create the "
Revival of Chiprovtsi Municipality"
in which business partners would be attracted from across the country. The first paycheque of the mayor, deputy mayor and councillors would form the "
share capital"
and a referendum would decide how the money would be used, though for Lilova, the best option would be to use the money to treat the ill and elderly.

In contrast, Derek Marnie, a 67-year-old Briton, is on the list of candidate councillors in Balchik from Drom, a party associated with Bulgaria’s Roma minority.

He bought property in Balchik eight years ago, coming first only during the summer but, after retiring three years later, moving to the Black Sea town. The report quoted Marnie as saying that he had no previous involvement with politics, especially because he had worked as a manager of projects involving European Union funds and regulations barred him from partisan political activity.

As he got to know the country, Marnie saw the serious infrastructure problems in residential areas, such as bad roads and inadequate sewerage. He began to take an active interest in news from Bulgaria, learning about what was going on in the country from English-language news websites.

In Bulgaria, he has been involved in the construction business, building houses for British buyers, a business in which he has partnered with his friend and neighbour, Ognyan Kralev.

The two decided to involve themselves in public life in Bulgaria but say that the parties tended not to accept outsiders. Drom, however, was welcoming.

"
We know the problems of Roma, because they are our employees,"
Kralev was quoted as saying. Marnie said that through regular dealings with Roma people, he saw that they were hard-working and honest, but have problems with education.

While acknowledging, according to 24 Chassa, that he would be unelectable – Kralev is second on Drom’s list, Marnie fourth – Marnie said that he had accepted a spot on Drom’s list because he believed that he could help Balchik.

Against corruption

Italian business person Rusi Domenico, who is second on the list of candidate municipal councillors nominated by ruling party GERB in Pazardjik, said that he feels himself to be Bulgarian.

"
A passport shows only where you were born, but does not express human feelings, the thoughts and emotions of the heart,"
he was quoted as saying.

Domenico (57) was born in Carpino, south Italy, spent much of his life in Germany after moving there with his parents in 1967, and has lived in Pazardjik for the past 15 years.

"
I arrived in Bulgaria in 1996 for a week’s leave. When I saw the condition of the country, I thought that here I could do many things. I stayed,"
Domenico said.

His business dealings in Bulgaria mainly involve agriculture and real estate.

It is not, however, his first encounter with politics. In Germany, he was a member of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union. He sees GERB as the only political formation in Bulgaria that can turn the country into one of the European Union’s leading members.

He said that he wanted to have order in Pazardjik, that would mean that the municipality would work for the interests of residents, to give them the best services at the best price. Currently, he said, this was not true. Now, people got poor services at high prices. This had to be overcome, he was quoted as saying.

For Domenico, another key point is to attract investment to the town and to create new jobs.

He gave as an example his friend Yakov Niv, a wealthy Israeli of Bulgarian extraction, the country’s top investor in 2010 and who wanted to invest in Pazardjik but who had not had, according to Domenico, full co-operation from the administration.

Domenico said that he had his own experiences of participating in tenders in which the outcome was determined by something other than European-standard rules. For this reason, he said, he wanted to work to suppress corruption.

Not everything is determined by money, Domenico said. "
It is about investing your mind, heart, knowledge and experience. In this way I have started to invest in Pazardzhik municipality,"
he said.

The Bulgarian daily identified the fifth non-EU national standing in Bulgaria’s municipal elections as Matthew James Pigden, in Samokov, where he reportedly is on the list of the Civil Initiative Samokov, a local coalition of a number of parties. The British citizen had encountered some difficulty when the local election commission initially refused to register him, saying that his documentation was incomplete, but on appeal, this had been overturned, the report said.

[size=55:2i3zq5wu]novinite

Here are the solutions that the top five candidates for Sofia mayor suggested to the city's gravest problems in various public appearances in the media during their pre-election campaign. The new mayor of Bulgaria's capital will be elected on October 23.


If elected Sofia mayor, what would you do about safety and security?

Yordanka Fandakova: In every big European city there are CCTV cameras installed everywhere – in the subway, along the streets. I strongly oppose the installation of video surveillance inside buildings – administrative buildings, schools.

Sofia is the first municipality in Bulgaria, which established a municipal police right after legislative changes allowed it to do so. Its obligation is to guard public events and places where many people gather. My aim is to expand its staff and operations.

My plan is to provide parks and gardens with CCTV cameras and enough lighting. I don't think fencing the gardens and parks is a good idea since it is very expensive.

Georgi Kadiev: Ensuring the security and safety of Sofia citizens and its guests should get the lion's share of the municipality budget. I consider CCTV footage to be very important in the combat against terror and crime having in mind the pace at which they are developing nowadays.

Sofia needs a strong municipal police. It currently numbers 110 policemen, while in Brussels it is 2500-strong, commanded directly by the mayor.

I think the parks and gardens in Sofia should be equipped with CCTV cameras, enough lighting and fences.

Proshko Proshkov: Video surveillance is a must in any big city. If I am elected mayor, the owner of every beautiful building in downtown Sofia who renovates its facade will get a CCTV camera as a gift from the municipality. It is important to identify the most problematic clusters of streets and districts, which most often turn into crime scenes.

It is a good idea to build fences around the smaller parks and gardens. But in the bigger ones we need to step up the security and increase the number of CCTV cameras for surveillance during the night to avoid the grisly crimes, which have recently shocked Sofia citizens.

Vladimir Karolev: I will definitely step up security measures in the city but not the way the ruling GERB party did it – piecemeal so that their sponsors and companies linked to the parties win the public procurement tenders.

Living in a Big Brother is inevitable nowadays. And besides let me remind you the two top liberal values back from the seventieth century – freedom, but also rule of law.

I don't think the parks and gardens in Sofia should be fenced and locked. This would be very expensive and clashes with Bulgaria's traditions.

Nikolay Pehlivanov: I am not a Big Brother fan. CCTV cameras should be installed only where they are a must and there is no other option – schools, subways.

It is not realistic to expect that we can surround all the parks and gardens with fences and lock them just as they do in Paris. But the smaller parks and gardens should be fenced, as well as the playgrounds for the children.

In terms of security and all other issues, Sofia needs radical solutions and determination. As things are now the institutions only follow the events.



If elected Sofia mayor, what would you do about Sofia citizens' taxes?

Yordanka Fandakova: Sofia should be treated for what it is – not just a big city, but a capital with all its obligations. I think that half of the money that Sofia citizens pay in taxes would suffice.

Georgi Kadiev: Currently about 23% of Sofia citizens' taxes stay in the budget of the capital. If I am elected mayor, I would make that percentage no more than 25%. Two-thirds of Bulgaria's municipalities have revenues below BGN 1 M and depend entirely on the capital. I think it is absolutely obligatory that Sofia shows solidarity. I know it is against my interest as a mayor, but we should think about the rest of the country too.

Proshko Proshkov: Sofia can keep half of the taxes, but only if it is combined with a reasonable territorial and regional policy. In the developed decentralized countries, such as Sweden, all income taxes go to the respective municipality the person lives and works. The state retains the value-added-taxes and the excise fees. The model in Bulgaria is vicious because very often the municipalities get or do not get funding out of political, not pragmatic reasons.

Vladimir Karolev: Saying that Sofia can keep half of the taxes is pure populism. This approach is also dangerous because it will make half of the municipalities in the country go bankrupt.

Nikolay Pehlivanov: The regulation as it is now - 23% of Sofia citizens' taxes stay in the budget of the capital – is just fine and there is no need to change it.



If elected Sofia mayor, what would you do about corruption combat?

Yordanka Fandakova: [If I receive a corruption tip-off implicating a municipal councilor on my ticket] I will check it and in case there is information it might be true, will immediately alert the prosecutor's office. I have proven I am not a fan of the political umbrellas.

Georgi Kadiev: Firstly, I can guarantee I am not corrupt and I have never been even though I have had the opportunity – I was in charge of the customs and the tax authorities. Secondly, I will establish a transparent system, which will not allow or at least will make it very hard for anyone to give or take bribes.

Proshko Proshkov: [If I receive a corruption tip-off implicating a municipal councilor on my ticket] I will approach the prosecutor's office and dismiss him from ticket. I will have zero tolerance to this type of crimes.

Vladimir Karolev: [If I receive a corruption tip-off implicating a municipal councilor on my ticket], I will ask the accused publicly whether this is true and will demand that he faces the lie detector.

Nikolay Pehlivanov: [If I receive a corruption tip-off implicating a municipal councilor on my ticket], I will immediately approach the prosecutor's office.



If elected Sofia mayor, what would you do about the stray dogs roaming the streets of the Bulgarian capital?

Yordanka Fandakova: Stray dogs should be put to sleep only when they are sick and aggressive, which is what we are doing at the moment. The solution to the problem lies in the registry of pets, castrated dogs, building shelters and euthanasia for the sick and aggressive dogs.

Georgi Kadiev: I would order euthanasia only for those dogs who are aggressive. This is what the European directive says.

Proshko Proshkov: I can not order that the stray dogs be killed because I would break the law. But they just should not be out in the street. The stray dogs in Sofia should go to shelters. But first of all we should stop those environmentally friendly organizations live Ekoravnovesie, who keep one of Sofia dirtiest secrets, These people remove just one of the two ovaries so that they can ask for more money for the second procedure. Sofia needs a zoo police, which will monitor the owners of dogs and catch them red-handed when they leave a dog out in the cold.

Vladimir Karolev: I would go for the so-called chemical castration. It was fairly recently invented in the United States.

Nikolay Pehlivanov: Stray dogs should be castrated and taken into shelters outside the territory of the city.



If elected Sofia mayor, what would you do about the Soviet Army Monument in Sofia?

Yordanka Fandakova: I plan to put the issue to а public discussion.

Georgi Kadiev: I won’t demolish it. I have no intention to demolish not a single monument.

Proshko Proshkov: I will remove it and put it in the museum for totalitarian symbol. Not a single Soviet soldier has been killed in Bulgaria, it was Bulgaria which was occupied by the Soviet Union.

Vladimir Karolev: I would opt for a referendum and do what the citizens of Sofia want to do with the monument.

Nikolay Pehlivanov: I won’t demolish it.



If elected Sofia mayor, what would you do about Sofia’s bid for European capital of culture?

Yordanka Fandakova: Sofia is making huge progress in this respect. I am working with my other colleagues on this.

Georgi Kadiev: What European capital of culture could Sofia be! There are 10 000 stray dogs roaming its streets, traffic jams, everything is gray and dirty. First Sofia need to be more colorful. Now it is extremely ugly, especially during the winter.

Proshko Proshkov: The citizens of Sofia are ready [to be citizens of the European capital of culture], but the city itself is not. Its administration does not work actively for developing cultural routes and archaeological sites, which clearly needs schemes for public-private partnership. It is important what is happening on the periphery of the city. This is where alternative forms of art thrive.

Vladimir Karolev: Sofia is not ready to be the European capital of culture and won’t be in the short term.

Nikolay Pehlivanov: The very idea is just absurd.

[size=55:2wf10okm]Sofia echo

Bulgaria Capital Mayor Re-elected - Exit Poll

Yordanka Fandakova, the candidate of Bulgaria's ruling party GERB and Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, has been reelected as mayor of the capital by a wide margin, exit poll results show.

Fandakova, who is widely seen as a protege of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, won 52.9% of the cast votes, according to the first exit poll results.

Georgi Kadiev, the candidate of the Bulgarian Socialist Party, known as the "
red yuppie"
, who has been seen as Fandakova's only serious competitor, remained second with 21.8% of the votes.

Proshko Proshkov, the right-wing Blue Coalition candidate for mayor of the capital Sofia, garnered 12.3% and came in third.

Nikolay Pehlivanov, a construction entrepreneur, running on the ticket of the nationalist Ataka party, garnered 3.2% of the votes.

Vladimir Karolev, candidate for Sofia mayor of the National Movement for Stability and Prosperity (NMSP), the political party of Bulgaria's former tsar and former prime minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg, gained the support of 2.7% of the voters and finished fifth.

The Sofia mayor elections have been widely regarded as a race with a relatively clear outcome from the very beginning not so much due to the popularity and public support for Prime Minister Borisov and the GERB party, but to the lack of real challengers from the opposition.

Fandakova, a former high school teacher of Russian who was totally unknown before she was promoted in 2009 by her predecessor and current PM Boyko Borisov, has recently come under increased criticism on various issues, and by popular opinion has lost some momentum.

Despite that with her re-election on Sunday, Fandakova has made history as she was the first woman ever to be Mayor of Sofia, a fact described as an advantage by Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov.

Fandakova was elected Sofia mayor in by-elections two years ago after former Sofia Mayor Boyko Borisov became Prime Minister following the overwhelming success of his party GERB in the parliamentary elections in July 2009.

Borisov was himself first elected in by-elections in 2005, and then re-elected at the regular elections in 2007.

Under his administration in 2005-2009, Fandakova served as a Deputy Mayor of Sofia in charge of education, youth, culture, and science. She had a brief stint as Minister of Education in Borisov's government.

The one from Silsitra Julian Naydeov popped into the Garden Party and bought some raffle tickets he won two soft toys one he gave to one of the children at the Dimcho and the other he kept for his grandchild. He stayed long enough to have photo with us. He is a also a medical doctor so h looks promising for mayor of Silistra at the moment. We also met the other two candidates they also popped in.

Election results.

Bulgarian.

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