SOFIA: Bulgaria is heading for its sixth election in three years after a planned government reshuffle failed this month.

The latest turmoil comes just nine months after the Balkan country’s two largest political parties formed a power-sharing government designed to end two years of political deadlock. The plan to rotate cabinet positions was mapped out by the two parties — the centre-right GERB and the liberal PP-DB — when they formed a pro-European government in June 2023.

As part of the reshuffle, Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel from the GERB was expected this month to swap posts with Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov of the PP-DB.

But disagreements over judicial reforms and the share-out of posts in the new government caused negotiations to break down.

President Rumen Radev is expected next week to announce the date of the snap general election, on our around the date of European Parliament polls on June 9.

“We are the world champions of elections,” said political scientist Teodor Slavev, as the country faces its sixth in three years.

Bulgaria, a member of both the European Union and NATO, has close historical and cultural ties to Russia.

Relations have been strained since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

However, “Russian influence remains strong and Moscow has an interest in instability,” Slavev told AFP.

At the centre of the latest crisis is former premier Boyko Borisov, who dominated political life in Bulgaria for almost a decade before being forced out following massive anti-corruption protests in 2020.

While a return to power is unlikely, analysts say Borisov will continue to wield considerable political clout. He is still leader of the powerful GERB, which has established a solid grassroots base.

“He is a very skilful politician with an acute political instinct,” said Dobromir Zhivkov, director of the Market Links institute.

During the recent reshuffle negotiations, Borisov, a former bodyguard, sought to secure key posts in the incoming government for the GERB and “hinder (government) reforms”, particularly in the justice and intelligence services, Zhivkov said.

One of the challenges for the future government will be to choose a new public prosecutor to replace his ousted predecessor.

According to experts, Borisov is aiming to preserve the status quo while hampering reforms and investigations into endemic corruption, with the help of lawmaker Delyan Peevski.

Britain and the United States have imposed sanctions on Peevski, a former media magnate, over allegations of graft.