Progressive Bulgaria leader Roumen Radev unveiled, at a ceremony at the Presidency on May 7, his proposed cabinet, in which he will be prime minister.
Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria has a majority of 131 seats in Bulgaria’s 240-seat National Assembly, making it a certainty that his government will be elected into office when the vote in Parliament is held on May 8.
The Radev government will have four deputy prime ministers and 18 ministers.
Prime Minister – Roumen Radev
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance – Gulub Donev
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Investments and Industry – Alexander Pulev
Deputy Prime Minister – Ivo Hristov
Deputy Prime Minister – Atanas Pekanov
Minister of Internal Affairs – Ivan Demerdzhiev
Minister of Defence – Dimitar Stoyanov
Minister of Foreign Affairs – Velislava Petrova-Chamova
Minister of Justice – Nikolay Naydenov
Minister of Labor and Social Policy – Natalia Efremova
Minister of Education and Science – Prof. Georgi Valchev
Minister of Health – Katya Ivkova
Minister of Innovation and Digital Transformation – Ivan Vassilev
Minister of Regional Development and Public Works – Ivan Shishkov
Minister of Energy – Iva Petrova
Minister of Transport and Communications – Georgi Peev
Minister of Agriculture and Food – Plamen Abrovski
Minister of Environment and Water – Rositsa Karamfilova-Blagova
Minister of Culture – Evtim Miloshev
Minister of Tourism – Ilin Dimitrov
Minister of Youth and Sports – Encho Keryazov
Radev was Bulgaria’s president for nine years before stepping down as head of state in January 2026 to enter parliamentary politics, with vice president Iliyana Yotova succeeding him to serve out the remainder of his second and final presidential term in office.
In Bulgaria’s April 19 early parliamentary elections, Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria won a decisive majority, the first time in 29 years that an election in Bulgaria saw a political force win enough seats to govern alone without requiring a coalition.
The May 7 event was in line with the constitution, with Yotova handing Progressive Bulgaria a mandate, as the largest parliamentary group, to seek to get a government elected.
Radev came prepared with the structure and line-up of his proposed government, handing it immediately to Yotova in a ceremony that lasted less than 15 minutes.
The structure of the proposed Radev government is slightly smaller than its predecessor, with Radev merging the innovation and e-government portfolio into the economy ministry.
Radev said: “Bulgarian citizens have put an end to the political crisis. The results of the last elections gave the will for stable institutions, for freedom, democracy and justice.
“This is a huge trust, but for us at Progressive Bulgaria it is also an exceptional responsibility, which we accept and prove with tireless work and dedication,” he said.
Radev outlined what he said were the main priorities for the new government.
“First of all – to break the trend of galloping prices, no matter how difficult it is. It is also necessary to restore justice, elect a new Supreme Judicial Council and an inspectorate to it,” he said.
He said that there are many question marks regarding the Budget for the year.
“We hope to understand as soon as possible what a hidden deficit means and what dimensions it has,” he said.
He said that the government will work to ensure that the funds under the Recovery and Sustainability Plan are not lost.
“In spite of this extremely compressed time horizon, I can assure you that we are already working on policies with a long-term horizon, so as to guarantee the modern accelerated development of the country, the security and well-being of Bulgarian citizens,” Radev said.
