Bulgaria Socialists, Anti-Socialists Top Election Spenders

Bulgaria's Audit Office published Friday the information about the money that the political parties spent on their Parliamentary Elections campaign.

Bulgaria's formerly ruling Socialist Party was the top spender with a total of BGN 2,038 M. BGN 150 000 were "own funds", BGN 1,5 M came from a state subsidy, and the donations amounted to BGN 371 000.

The BSP spent most of that - BGN 1,337 M on advertising in the press, on TV and on radio.

The arch-enemy of the Socialists from the 1990s, the rightist Blue Coalition was a close second with a spending of BGN 2,029. It got a state subsidy of BGN 1,250 M, donations for 350 000 and used own funds amounting to BGN 280 000. Its media advertising spending surpassed that of the Socialists - BGN 1,359 M.

The ethnic Turkish party DPS, which was the top spender on the EU Elections, this time spent only BGN 999 000. BGN 500 000 of these were for media ads. The DPS got a state subsidy of BGN 770 000, and donations for 230 000.

The fourth largest spender was the party of energy tycoon Hristo Kovachki, LIDER, which spend a total of BGN 959 000 together with its coalition partner Novoto Vreme (The New Time); there coalition failed to make it to Parliament. LIDER contributed with donations for BGN 600 000, and Novoto Vreme - for BGN 359 000.

The Parliamentary Elections winner, PM Borisov's GERB party spent BGN 826 000. GERB invested own funds amounting to BGN 462 000; it got BGN 105 000 from donations, and BGN 260 000 from bank loans as some of its leaders mortgaged their apartments.

The conservative RZS party spent BGN 735 000. It got BGN 285 000 from donations, BGN 400 000 from a state subsidy, and BGN 56 000 from own funds.

The most modest spender was the nationalist Ataka party. It spent only BGN 220 000. BGN 138 came from donations, and BGN 32 000 from own funds.

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