Sofia elects first woman mayor

16/11/2009

Sunday's poll made history but was marred by low turnout.

(Dnevnik, Standart, Focus news Agency, Novinite -- 15/11/09 - 16/11/09; AFP, DPA, Sofia Echo, Mediapool - 15/11/09)

GERB party candidate Yordanka Fandukova leaves the voting booth in Sofia on Sunday (November 15th).

Bulgarian Education Minister Yordanka Fandukova won a landslide victory in the mayoral by-election in Sofia on Sunday (November 15th), becoming the first woman to run the city in its 130-year history as the capital.

Fandukova, 47, was the candidate of the ruling centre-right Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) and was supported by the rightist Blue Coalition and the nationalist Ataka party. She won 66% of the vote, succeeding Boyko Borisov, who left the post to become prime minister on July 27th.

The other main contender, Georgi Kadiev, of the main opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), was a distant second with 28% of the votes. Pavel Popov, candidate of the conservative Order, Law and Justice party (OLJ), was third with less than 3%, while the other 15 candidates received less than 1% of the vote each.

The election was marked by record low turnout; only 23.17% of all registered voters in Sofia cast ballots Sunday.

Some analysts cited apathy, the lacklustre campaign and election fatigue as the main reasons. Bulgarians elected their representatives in the European Parliament in June and were asked to go to the polls again a month later to pick members of their own parliament.

Others attributed the low turnout to the fact that Fandukova was seen as the clear winner the moment she was nominated for the post, as GERB continues to enjoy huge public support. In addition, she will only finish off the four-year mandate Borisov won in October 2007.

Psychologist Ivan Igov told Sofia-based Focus news agency that those who cast a ballot for the education minister Sunday "voted pragmatically", wanting to make sure that the new mayor will be able to deliver on pledges made during the campaign.

"The people who voted are those Sofia residents who believe this is the beginning of joint work -- between the state, municipalities and citizens," the agency quoted Igov as saying in reference to Fandukova's promise for dialogue between the public and municipal authorities.

A former Russian language teacher and school principal, Fandukova has been one of Borisov's close aides since late 2005, when he picked her as his deputy in charge of education, youth, culture and science after winning the pre-term mayoral election in Sofia as an independent candidate.

At a news conference Sunday evening, Fandukova said she is aware of the challenges she would have to address in her new job, but would not hesitate to call the prime minister whenever she needed the government's support.

"We will ask for money from the state for specific projects, we will not seek general funds but will concentrate on these projects," Fandukova said. "I think Sofia will receive all the funds it requires."

Her immediate tasks would include a review of Sofia's budget and preparations for the winter season, Dnevnik daily quoted her as telling reporters before the news conference.

Traffic congestion and the lack of parking spaces in the capital are just some of the problems Fandukova faces.

Despite his defeat, Kadiev said he was satisfied with the outcome of the vote.

"I wanted to demonstrate BSP's character and I did it," he said Sunday evening.