The centre-right Blue Coalition could hardly campaign for Bulgaria’s June 7 2009 European Parliament elections because it was tied up with court battles, but expects to do better in next month’s national parliamentary elections.
 
That was the message from Martin Dimitrov, leader of the Union of Democratic Forces, and Ivan Kostov, leader of the Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria, whose Blue Coalition was said to different polls to have won either one or two seats in the European Parliament.
 
Dimitrov, speaking after polls closed and on the basis of exit polls, said that he expected in the next elections the Blue Coalition would do better.
 
The Blue Coalition had not been able to get its message to voters because it had been tied up in court procedures.
 
The coalition was the subject of formal challenges because of technical rules that left Dimitrov’s predecessor as UDF leader, Plamen Yuroukov, formally in place as leader.
 
Kostov said that the election had been stolen from the Blue Coalition by the ruling party. The coalition had no opportunity to talk to people.
 
Dimitrov and Kostov said that the ruling Bulgarian Socialist Party had "run away" from challenges to debate – a challenge that Dimitrov now issued once more.
 
The two reached out to Boiko Borissov’s Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria on the issue of majoritarian voting.
 
They indicated that they wanted the Blue Coalition to work with Borissov’s party, commonly known by its Bulgarian abbreviation as GERB, in putting up joint candidates in majoritarian seats in the national parliamentary elections scheduled for July 5 2009.
 
They believed that this approach would be accepted, Dimitrov and Kostov said.