MRF nominated its leader Karadayi for presidential candidate, Peevski heads two electoral lists for upcoming general elections

The Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) has nominated candidates for president and vice president for the first time since the party was established. MRF leader, Mustafa Karadayi, and MEP, Iskra Mihaylova, are the party's candidates. In the previous elections, MRF supported Plamen Oresharski, nominated by an initiative committee. Businessman Delyan Peevski is returning to politics as a leader of two lists - in Blagoevgrad and in Veliko Turnovo.

Exactly at 16.00 the documents for registration of the candidates for presidential team, Mustafa Karadayi - Iskra Mihailova, were submitted for registration to the Central Election Commission by prominent figures in the leadership of the MRF such as Yunal Lutfi, Emel Etem, Yordan Tsonev.

The final decision on the nominations was taken at a meeting of the MRF’s National Operations Bureau this afternoon.

Unal Lutfi told the media that, in his opinion, it was these purely party candidacies that should have been nominated even earlier, because that was the expectation of the voters. He said that Iskra Mihaylova is not a member of the MRF, but she is a very active MEP from MRF with high positions in the European Parliament.

After the registration, Unal Lutfi announced to the media that the MRF is nominating an exceptional presidential candidate - a popular, consistent, predictable and trustworthy.

This is, without exaggerating, a historic day for the MRF, said Yunal Lutfi, a member of the National Operational Leadership.

BNT: How did you make the decision to nominate your leader, a purely party candidate? There was talk of nominations outside the ranks of the MRF?

Over the past 30 years, MRF has proved to be an extremely important party in the political building of a democratic Bulgaria from the 1990s to date. It is the most stable, the most predictable and with seriously high regard in Europe and the world, Lutfi added.

Asked to comment on whether in this way the MRF does not risk its long-term role of providing balance in Bulgarian political life, Lutfi said that this stage of providing balance has passed.

We are now taking serious stides towards participating in power and without MRF, believe me, it would be difficult to make a serious, lasting and stable government in Bulgaria.

When asked by BNT who they would support if their candidates did not reach the runoff in the presidential election, Emel Etem answered that this issue will be discussed in the party.

Delyan Peevski is the leader of the MRF list in Veliko Tarnovo

The other piece of news from the MRF is that Delyan Peevski returns to politics. After not being on the electoral lists for the 45th and 46th National Assembly as a result of a personal decision, he again heads the electoral lists of the MRF - in Veliko Turnovo and Blagoevgrad.

Delyan Peevski was sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky Act and was recently named in the "Pandora Papers”.

The regional chairman of the MRF in Veliko Turnovo said that it was too early to talk about the accusations against Peevski, because inspections are underway, and the institutions in Bulgaria have not yet proved anything. That is why, according to him, the Movement is firmly behind Delyan Peevski and he would openly and positively participate in the campaign.