Socialist Leader Stanishev to Be MEP for 1 Month

Sergey Stanishev, the leader of ruling Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), said he would go to Brussels as MEP, but only for a month.

Speaking for public broadcaster BNR, he cited the "commitment" to propose current EP President Martin Schulz as a EU Commission President candidate of the S&D group within the European Parliament.

"The term in office of a MEP begins from the first [EP] session. This is July 1. The [S&D] group's session is before that. I have got seven days to write a declaration to the European Parliament saying that I renounce [the MEP seat]," the BSP leader explained.

He displayed his annoyance with frequent media questions whether he would go to Brussels as MEP by saying, "You have been asking me the same thing for four months. I have answered many times."

The S&D group's session is on June 18. Aftern July 1 the leader will continue his work as a Bulgarian lawmaker.

Stanishev, who is also President of the Party of European Socialists (PES), topped the BSP's election list but was surprisingly replaced by #15, Momchil Nekov, following massive preference vote.

These recent developments mean that Petar Kurumbashev, who was #4 in the list (and the socialists have won only 4 MEP seats), will fly to Brussels and be sworn in later on.

The reason is that Momchil Nekov has already decided to enter the European Parliament. Alongside Stanishev and Nenkov, BSP Deputy Chair Georgi Pirinski and MEP Iliyana Yotova fill the socialist MEP quota.