Framed Bulgarian Const Court Candidate Retracts Nomination

Prosecutor Galya Gugusheva has withdrawn her candidacy to become a member of Bulgaria's Constitutional Court following a series of allegations of past abuse of power.

This was revealed by rightist Union of Democratic Forces chair Emil Kabaivanov Tuesday, after the UDF and ruling center-right GERB party decided to withdraw support for Gugusheva.

Gugusheva's nomination was approved by UDF leadership and tabled by non-affiliated MPs, as UDF MPs refused to support the nomination, which led to them being dismissed.

Tuesday UDF and GERB reached an agreement for UDF to work on presenting a new candidacy, but the procedure is not expected to start before the New Year.

UDF chair Kabaivanov stated that the party will propose changing the rules for electing constitutional judges from the Parliament's quota to avoid future such problems.

"Anyone can be defamed in the way Gugusheva was. This means playing from behind the curtains, and is not fair political dealing," said the rightist leader.

Gugusheva is the second failed Constitutional Court nominee by Parliament, after the fiasco with judge Veneta Markovska, whose election by Parliament was not respected by Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev, due to allegations of dealing in influence that she was not able to dispel.