Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form:
Bulgaria
local long form:
Republika Balgariya
local short form:
Balgariya
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy
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Capital:
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name: Sofia
geographic coordinates:
42 41 N, 23 19 E
time difference:
UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time:
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
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Administrative divisions:
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28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast); Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Khaskovo, Kurdzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofiya (Sofia), Sofiya-Grad (Sofia City), Stara Zagora, Turgovishte, Varna, Veliko Turnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol
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Independence:
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3 March 1878 (as an autonomous principality within the Ottoman Empire); 22 September 1908 (complete independence from the Ottoman Empire)
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National holiday:
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Liberation Day, 3 March (1878)
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Constitution:
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adopted 12 July 1991
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Legal system:
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civil law
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International law organization participation:
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accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Rosen PLEVNELIEV (since 22 January 2012); Vice President Margarita POPOVA (since 22 January 2012)
head of government:
(Acting) Prime Minister Marin RAYKOV (since 13 March 2013); note - Boyko BORISOV, prime minister since 27 July 2009, resigned on 20 February 2013; (Acting) Deputy Prime Ministers Deyana KOSTADINOVA, Iliyana TSANOVA, and Ekaterina ZAHARIEVA (since 13 March 2013)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly
(For more information visit the World Leaders websiteĀ )
elections:
president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 23 and 30 October 2011 (next to be held in 2016); chairman of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) elected by the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly
election results:
Rosen PLEVNELIEV elected president in a runoff election; percent of vote - Rosen PLEVNELIEV 52.6%, Ivailo KALFIN 47.4%; Boyko BORISSOV elected prime minister; result of legislative vote - 162 to 77 with 1 abstention
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral National Assembly or Narodno Sabranie (240 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections:
last held on 5 July 2009 (next to be held in 12 May 2013)
election results:
percent of vote by party - GERB 39.7%, BSP 17.7%, MRF 14.4%, ATAKA 9.4%, Blue Coalition 6.8%, RZS 4.1%, other 7.9%; seats by party as of February 2013 - GERB 117, BSP 40, MRF 35, Blue Coalition 14, ATAKA 10, independents 24
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Judicial branch:
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independent judiciary comprised of judges, prosecutors and investigating magistrates who are appointed, promoted, demoted, and dismissed by a 25-member Supreme Judicial Council (consists of the chairmen of the two Supreme Courts, the Chief Prosecutor, and 22 members, half of whom are elected by the National Assembly and the other half by the bodies of the judiciary for a 5-year term in office); three levels of case review; 182 courts of which two Supreme Courts act as the last instance on civil and criminal cases (the Supreme Court of Cassation) and appeals of government decisions (the Supreme Administrative Court)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Attack (Ataka) [Volen SIDEROV]; Blue Coalition [Ivan KOSTOV and Martin DIMITROV] (a parliamentary coalition of center-right parties dominated by UDF and DSB); Bulgarian Socialist Party or BSP [Sergei STANISHEV]; Bulgaria of the Citizens [Meglena KUNEVA]; Citizens for the European Development of Bulgaria or GERB [Boyko BORISOV]; Coalition for Bulgaria or CfB [Sergei STANISHEV] (coalition of parties dominated by BSP); Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria or DSB [Ivan KOSTOV]; Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization or IMRO [Krasimir KARAKACHANOV]; Movement for Rights and Freedoms or MRF [Lyutvi MESTAN]; National Movement for Stability and Progress or NDSV [Hristina HRISTOVA] (formerly National Movement Simeon II or NMS2); Order, Law, and Justice or RZS [Yane YANEV]; Union of Democratic Forces or UDF [Emil KABAIVANOV]; United People's Party or ENP [Maria CAPONE]
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria or CITUB; Podkrepa Labor Confederation
other:
numerous regional, ethnic, and national interest groups with various agendas
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International organization participation:
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Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CD, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, G- 9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Elena POPTODOROVA
chancery:
1621 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 387-0174
FAX:
[1] (202) 234-7973
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Marcie B. RIES
embassy:
16 Kozyak Street, Sofia 1408
mailing address:
American Embassy Sofia, US Department of State, 5740 Sofia Place, Washington, DC 20521-5740
telephone:
[359] (2) 937-5100
FAX:
[359] (2) 937-5320
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Flag description:
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three equal horizontal bands of white (top), green, and red; the pan-Slavic white-blue-red colors were modified by substituting a green band (representing freedom) for the blue
note:
the national emblem, formerly on the hoist side of the white stripe, has been removed
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National symbol(s):
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lion
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National anthem:
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name: "Mila Rodino" (Dear Homeland)
lyrics/music:
Tsvetan Tsvetkov RADOSLAVOV
note:
adopted 1964; the anthem was composed in 1885 by a student en route to fight in the Serbo-Bulgarian War
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