Who is Who: Candidates for Kardzhali Mayor

Kardzhali is a town located in the low eastern part of Rhodope Mountains. Its population – which numbers 42,744 residents according to a 2011 census – is made up predominantly of ethnic Turks.

Following are the main contenders for the mayoral post in the town this year:

Hassan Azis – incumbent mayor, nominated by the ethnic Movement for Rights and Freedoms, seeking re-election for his third term. Split vote expectedly paved the way for the re-election of the incumbent ethnic Turkish mayor in the southern town of Kardzhali in 2007. Hassan Azis, backed by the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, garnered 56,3 % of the votes. Hassan Azis' bid for a second term was challenged by three candidates, who set out on a crusade to topple the hegemony of the ethnic Turkish party. Nikola Pashinov, who joined the race on the ticket of the Association for Kardzhali, set up in September 2007 with the goal to topple the ethnic Turkish mayor of the town, ranked second with 36,1% of the votes. Third came in the candidate of GERB party, businessman Stefan Chanev (6%), followed by Agor Uzunbohosyan (1.2%), who was supported by the right-wing hard-liners from Democrats for Strong Bulgaria, the Union of Free Democrats and the Democratic Party. Analysts commented that the number of candidates scattered the votes against the ethnic Turkish party and made his re-election easier.

Milko Bagdasarov – nominated by the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP). He was born on October 21, 1958 in Plovdiv. Holds Master Degree in Informatics, Law, Business Administration, Accounting and Control. Chairman of the Regional Council of the BSP in Kardzhali. Member of the Municipal Council in the town.

Ilia Iliev – nominated by the ruling center-right GERB party. Iliev was born on March 25, 1969. He has been developing his own business since 2002.