The Sofia Council of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) elected Sunday Georgi Kadiev, municipal councilor and failed runner for mayor of Sofia, for its candidate in the upcoming 2011 local elections, as was earlier expected.
Kadiev's nomination, which took place after a four-hour debate at a conference of the Sofia organization of BSP, provoked controversy, with some representatives requesting that the nomination be voted by socialist delegates from the whole country, given the importance of the post of mayor of Bulgaria's capital.
In particular Yanaki Stoilov, MP and representative of the so-called “Left Socialists” group in BSP, expressed disapproval of the proceedings.
Georgi Kadiev's nomination was put forward by Rumen Ovcharov, chair of BSP's Sofia Council and economy minister (2005-7) in the former cabinet, who gave a speech on the political situation in the country, including the current center-right GERB government and the standing of the Socialist Party.
Next to voicing harsh criticisms of the cabinet's policies, Ovcharov once again called for an election of a new leader of BSP to replace ex-PM Sergey Stanishev, who has chaired the party since 2001. According to BSP's Sofia leader, this is the only way the party can change and overcome the crisis in which it is bogged.
Ovcharov commented that in spite of what he saw as disastrous policies of the cabinet, public disapproval has failed to materialize in support for BSP, which is the main opposition party.
Some delegates at the conference expressed disappointment at the divisive and complicated nature of Sunday's proceedings.
Nevertheless Kadiev's candidacy was approved with 127 votes “for”, 5 “against” and 1 abstention.
Kadiev was BSP's candidate in last year's elections for Sofia mayor, after then-mayor Boyko Borisov went to become Bulgaria's PM after the center-right GERB party led by him won a landslide victory at the general elections.
Kadiev lost at the first round to GERB's Yordanka Fandakova, who got 64% of the vote, with the socialist candidate barely getting 28%.
Georgi Kadiev is styled as a “red yuppie” and has expressed willingness to take up the position of party leader from Stanishev.
In Stanishev's three-way coalition cabinet, Kadiev served as deputy finance minister 2005-7, filing a resignation over policy disagreements with finance minister Plamen Oresharski. Since 2007 he has been serving as a member of the Sofia Municipal Council.
