Parliamentary elections were held in Bulgaria on 17 June 2001.[1] The result was a victory for the National Movement – Simeon II, which won 120 of the 240 seats. Following the elections, Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the country's last Tsar, who was deposed by the Bulgarian Communist Party in 1946, became Prime Minister.[2]
Background
The elections came four years after the last parliamentary elections in 1997, marking the first occasion since the fall of communism that a full term had been completed.[2] A total of 65 parties registered for the elections, together with eleven independents.[2]
National Movement – Simeon II was originally prevented from registering by Sofia City Court as it failed to meet the Central Election Committee's requirements. However, after forming an alliance with the Bulgarian Women's Party and the Movement for National Revival, the party was allowed to register.[2]
Results
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Movement Simeon II | 1,952,513 | 42.74 | 120 | New | |
| United Democratic Forces | 830,338 | 18.18 | 51 | −86 | |
| Coalition for Bulgaria | 783,372 | 17.15 | 48 | −10 | |
| Movement for Rights and Freedoms | 340,395 | 7.45 | 21 | +2 | |
| VMRO–George's Day Movement | 165,927 | 3.63 | 0 | New | |
| Simeon II Coalition | 157,141 | 3.44 | 0 | New | |
| National Union for Tsar Simeon II | 77,671 | 1.70 | 0 | New | |
| Bulgarian Social Democracy | 44,637 | 0.98 | 0 | 0 | |
| Union Bulgaria | 33,637 | 0.74 | 0 | New | |
| Coalition "National Union Tzar Kiro" | 27,636 | 0.60 | 0 | New | |
| NU Fatherland and Left | 21,851 | 0.48 | 0 | New | |
| George Ganchev's Bloc | 17,272 | 0.38 | 0 | New | |
| UAF–BZNS–BZNS(NP) | 15,504 | 0.34 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bulgarian Workers' Party | 12,579 | 0.28 | 0 | New | |
| Democratic Party of Justice | 10,822 | 0.24 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bulgarian Socialist Workers' Party | 10,797 | 0.24 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bulgarian Communist Party "Fatherland" | 9,373 | 0.21 | 0 | New | |
| Patriotism 2000 | 6,077 | 0.13 | 0 | New | |
| Union of Patriotic Forces and Militaries of the Reserve Defense | 5,227 | 0.11 | 0 | New | |
| Bulgarian Democratic Party for United States of Europe and the World | 4,804 | 0.11 | 0 | 0 | |
| MDRUSWC–FPFB | 4,740 | 0.10 | 0 | New | |
| Bulgarian National Party "Social Union" | 4,439 | 0.10 | 0 | New | |
| Alternative Social-Liberal Party | 4,267 | 0.09 | 0 | New | |
| Free Cooperative Party | 3,935 | 0.09 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bulgarian National-Radical Party | 3,018 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 | |
| Social Liberal Movement "Justice" | 2,715 | 0.06 | 0 | New | |
| National Movement for New Era | 2,462 | 0.05 | 0 | New | |
| Patriotic Party of Labour | 1,601 | 0.04 | 0 | New | |
| Alliance for Preservation of the Wealth of Bulgaria | 1,414 | 0.03 | 0 | New | |
| Party of the Workers' and Social Democratic Intelligentsia | 1,033 | 0.02 | 0 | New | |
| Bulgarian Fatherland Party "National Union" | 623 | 0.01 | 0 | New | |
| National Party of Labour, Private Owners, Producers and Creators | 524 | 0.01 | 0 | New | |
| Bulgarian National Front | 202 | 0.00 | 0 | New | |
| Bulgarian Business Bloc | 162 | 0.00 | 0 | −12 | |
| Party of the Middle Class | 79 | 0.00 | 0 | New | |
| Union of the Nation – Movement of the Deprived | 39 | 0.00 | 0 | New | |
| Independents | 9,365 | 0.21 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 4,568,191 | 100.00 | 240 | 0 | |
| Valid votes | 4,568,191 | 99.13 | |||
| Invalid/blank votes | 39,944 | 0.87 | |||
| Total votes | 4,608,135 | 100.00 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 6,916,151 | 66.63 | |||
| Source: Nohlen & Stöver, University of Essex | |||||
Aftermath
Following the elections, Simeon Sakskoburggotski became Prime Minister and formed the Sakskoburggotski Government.
A study in the context of the election investigated which societal groups contribute to electoral volatility on the individual level. The findings described that voters belonging to the Turkish minority contribute to party system stability because they were less likely to switch their vote than their Bulgarian or Roma peers. The authors argue that "ethnic socialization provides information shortcuts for vote choice in low-information environments of new democracies." The case is considered evidence that ethnic minorities with relevant ethnic-linguistic parties in new democracies contribute to party system stability.[3]
References
- ^ Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p.369 ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7
- ^ a b c d "Bulgaria: Elections held in 2001". Inter-Parliamentary Union.
- ^ Birnir, Jóhanna Kristín (2007). "Divergence in Diversity? The Dissimilar Effects of Cleavages on Electoral Politics in New Democracies". American Journal of Political Science. 47 (2): 602–619. doi:10.1111/j.1540-5907.2007.00270.x. JSTOR 4620087. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
