National Assembly of Bulgaria
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The National Assembly of Bulgaria (Bulgarian: Народно събрание, transliterated as Narodno sabranie) is the unicameral parliament and body of the legislative of the Republic of Bulgaria.
It was established in 1991 with Bulgaria's constitution, articles 62 to 91, as a successor to the National Assembly that has been in continuous operation since 1879.
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[edit] Ordinary National Assembly
The National Assembly consists of 240 members elected for a four-year term by proportional representation in multi-seat constituencies. Political parties must garner a minimum of 4% of the national vote in order to enter the Assembly. Bulgaria has a multi-party system, with numerous parties in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties must work with each other to form coalition governments.
The Assembly is responsible for enactment of laws, approval of the budget, scheduling of presidential elections, selection and dismissal of the Prime Minister and other ministers, declaration of war and deployment of troops outside of Bulgaria, and ratification of international treaties and agreements. It is headed and presided by the Chairman of the National Assembly of Bulgaria.
[edit] Grand National Assembly
In addition to the ordinary National Assembly, a Grand National Assembly (Велико народно събрание, Veliko narodno sabranie) may be convened in order for matters of national importance to be resolved, such as the adoption or change of a constitution, territorial changes, the election of a head of state or regents, etc.
As an organ, the Grand National Assembly was introduced with the Tarnovo Constitution of 1879, abolished in 1947 and reintroduced with the 1991 constitution. It consists of 400 deputies (as opposed to 240 in the ordinary one), 200 being elected by proportional representation and the other 200 by majoritarian representation. A qualified majority of 2/3 during three voting procedures on separate dates is required for a decision to be made. The Grand National Assembly can also serve as an ordinary National Assembly, taking care of regular legislative activities, until the election of one, when it is dissolved.
A total of seven Grand National Assemblies have been in operation in Bulgaria, the last one from 10 July 1990 to 12 July 1991 adopting the current constitution.
[edit] Building
The building where the National Assembly sits is of historic significance and is proclaimed a monument of culture. Situated in the capital city of Sofia's very centre, it was constructed in Neo-Renaissance style between 1884 and 1886 by Konstantin Jovanović, a Serbian architect who received his education in Vienna and Switzerland and whose other works include the Parliament of Serbia building.
[edit] Current composition (2005-2009)
This is the composition of the 40th (ordinary) National Assembly of Bulgaria as established by the Bulgarian parliamentary election in 2005. Since the elections, slight changes have occurred in the composition of a number of coalitions and parties. Currently, the government consists of a coalition composed of the Coalition for Bulgaria, the National Movement Simeon II and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms aimed at the 2007 Accession of Bulgaria to the European Union.
| Coalitions and parties | Votes | % | Seats | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Coalition for Bulgaria (Koalicija za Bălgarija)
|
1,129,196 | 34.0 | 82 | +34 |
| National Movement Simeon II (Nacionalno Dviženie Simeon Vtori) | 725,314 | 21.8 | 53 | -67 |
| Movement for Rights and Freedoms (Dviženie za Prava i Svobodi) | 467,400 | 14.1 | 34 | +13 |
National Union Attack (Nacionalno Obedinenie Ataka)
|
296,848 | 8.9 | 21 | +21 |
United Democratic Forces (Obedineni demokratični sili)
|
280,323 | 8.4 | 20 | -31 |
| Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria (Demokrati za Silna Bălgarija) | 234,788 | 7.1 | 17 | +17 |
Bulgarian People's Union (Bălgarski Naroden Săjuz)
|
189,268 | 5.7 | 13 | +13 |
| Total (turnout 55.8%) | 3,648,177 | 100.0 | 240 | |
| Invalid votes | 99,616 | |||
| Votes cast | 3,747,793 | |||
| Registered voters | 6,720,941 | |||
| Source: Centralna Izbiratelna Komisija, Bulgarian parliament and Adam Carr's Electoral Archive | ||||
