Bulgaria is a parliamentary-democratic republic. The head of state is a president who is elected in the general election for 5 years and can be re-elected only once. The real power lies with the government. The National Assembly, Narodno sobranje, has 240 members who are elected in the general election for 4 years.

Bulgaria is divided into 28 oblasts (counties) with names after the administration center. Each oblast is divided into municipalities, totaling 287.

The President and the Government

The head of state, the president, is elected in the general election for five years. A candidate must have an absolute majority in order to be elected, if necessary, another round of elections is held. The President and the Vice President can only be re-elected once. The president appoints the prime ministerial candidate, sanctions laws and is military commander-in-chief, but the real executive rests with the prime minister and the government.

The National Assembly

The National Assembly is called Narodno sabranje and has 240 members. It has the legislative and granting authority and is elected in the general election for four years. The voting age is 18 years and voting is mandatory.

Administratively

Administratively, Bulgaria is divided into 28 regions (oblast), including the metropolitan area. The regions are headed by state-appointed governors. They also have the task of coordinating local and state interests. Emphasis is placed on preventing regional contradictions from playing an important role. The lowest administrative units, the municipalities, are led by elected municipal councils and mayors, elected for four years.

Judiciary

The courts have been independent since 1991. The two supreme courts are a Supreme Court of Cassation and a Supreme Administrative Court. It is also a Constitutional Court. At lower levels there are appeals courts, associates, military courts and district courts. The prosecuting authority is headed by a prosecutor. In most cases, judges and prosecutors are appointed by a Supreme Judicial Council, headed by the Minister of Justice and otherwise made up of leading judicial experts. The two Supreme Court leaders and the Attorney General are appointed by the President for seven years on a proposal from the Justice Council.

Historical development

Bulgaria from 1946 to 1990 was a very obedient Soviet- allied people ‘s republic. The Communist “Dimitrov Constitution” of 1947 was replaced by a new constitution in 1991, after which the country is a parliamentary-democratic republic and a united state.

Bulgarian politics has been characterized by some unrest since the fall of the communist regime, and several parties and alliances have been in power.