Bulgarian VP Candidate to be Fined for Offensive Remarks, segabg.com reports

Bulgarian election authorities have penalized Atanas Stefanov, a vice presidential candidate representing the Truth and Only the Truth People’s Party, after he made derogatory remarks about the head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and LGBTQ+ individuals during a state television appearance, segabg.com reported.

The Central Election Commission Sanctions Stefanov Over BNT Broadcast

The Electronic Media Council flagged Stefanov’s appearance on the Bulgarian National Television program Day Begins to the Central Election Commission. Commissioners reviewed the broadcast and determined that Stefanov’s statements constituted offensive and humiliating expressions aimed at excluding a specific group of people from public life based on their sexual orientation, according to segabg.com. The commission also found that his comments regarding the patriarch amounted to severe and defamatory claims that exceeded the legal boundaries of acceptable political expression during an election campaign.

The Central Election Commission concluded that Stefanov violated provisions of the Electoral Code that prohibit damaging public morals during campaigning. Authorities will issue an administrative violation act against the candidate. Under this specific legal provision, fines range from 2,000 to 5,000 levs, segabg.com reported.

Stefanov Faces Repeat Sanctions for Public Morals Violations

Stefanov faces a repeat sanction under the exact same legal provision from a previous election cycle. During the April parliamentary elections, when he ran as a member of parliament candidate, authorities penalized him for identical violations of public morals, segabg.com noted. In that same campaign, the commission also sanctioned his party leader, Ventsislav Angelov.

The Truth and Only the Truth People’s Party regularly participates in national ballots, securing 4,392 votes, or 0.136 percent, in the most recent parliamentary election, segabg.com reported. Like other registered contenders, the organization utilizes taxpayer-funded media packages granting paid campaign access across national networks.

State Broadcaster Schedules Debates for Multiple Candidate Pairs

State broadcaster schedules show multiple candidate pairs and initiatives taking part in ongoing media debates alongside the penalized contenders. BNT broadcast programming features vice presidential candidates Ivan Ivanov and Todor Tagarev, alongside presidential hopefuls Boyan Rasate and Metodi Bachvarov, bnt.bg reported. Representatives for ticket combinations involving Alexander Tomov, Alexander Garibov, Ivan Hristivan, Stoyanka Cherkezova, and Radostin Vassilev have likewise participated in official debate broadcasts across regional and national studio hubs, according to bnt.bg.