Conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
Conventional short form: Bulgaria
Local long form: Republika Bulgaria
Local short form: Bulgaria
Former: Kingdom of Bulgaria, People's Republic of Bulgaria
Etymology: named after the Bulgar tribes who settled the lower Balkan region in the 7th century A.D.
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Bulgaria
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Chief of state: President Rumen RADEV (since 22 January 2017); Vice President Iliana IOTOVA (since 22 January 2017)
Head of government: Prime Minister Kiril PETKOV (since 13 December 2021)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, elected by the National Assembly
Elections appointments: president and vice president elected on the same ballot by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 14 and 21 November 2021 (next to be held in fall 2026); chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) elected by the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister, elected by the National Assembly
Election results: 2021
2016: Rumen RADEV elected president in second round; percent of vote - Rumen RADEV (independent, supported by Bulgarian Socialist Party) 59.4%, Tsetska TSACHEVA (GERB) 36.2%, neither 4.5%
2011: Rosen PLEVNELIEV elected president in runoff election; percent of vote - Rosen PLEVNELIEV (independent) 52.6%, Ivailo KALFIN (BSP) 47.4%
Description: unicameral National Assembly or Narodno Sabranie (240 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)
Elections: last held on 14 November 2021 (next election to be held in 2025)
Election results: percent of vote by party/coalition - PP 25.3%, GERB-SDS 22.4%, DPS 12.8%, BSP for Bulgaria 10.1%, ITN 9.4%, DB 6.3%, Revival 4.8%, other 8.9%; seats by party/coalition - PP 67, GERB-SDS 59, DPS 34, BSP for Bulgaria 26, ITN 25, DB 16, Revival 13
Highest courts: Supreme Court of Cassation (consists of a chairman and approximately 72 judges organized into penal, civil, and commercial colleges); Supreme Administrative Court (organized into 2 colleges with various panels of 5 judges each); Constitutional Court (consists of 12 justices); note - Constitutional Court resides outside the judiciary
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court of Cassation and Supreme Administrative judges elected by the Supreme Judicial Council or SJC (consists of 25 members with extensive legal experience) and appointed by the president; judges can serve until mandatory retirement at age 65; Constitutional Court justices elected by the National Assembly and appointed by the president and the SJC; justices appointed for 9-year terms with renewal of 4 justices every 3 years
Subordinate courts: appeals courts; regional and district courts; administrative courts; courts martial
Lyrics music: Tsvetan Tsvetkov RADOSLAVOV
Note: adopted 1964; composed in 1885 by a student en route to fight in the Serbo-Bulgarian War
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