The victory of Rumen Radev is not just an election result - it is a political slap in the face to the status quo and a clear signal that public patience is running out. At the same time, the poor result of Boyko Borisov and his GERB party shows not just electoral erosion, but a deep crisis of trust, accumulated over years. Against this background, the awakening of We Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria seems belated but inevitable. They are once again trying to enter the role of carriers of change, but this time without the luxury of naivety from their first managerial experience.
The big question, however, remains: what will Radev do with this concentration of power and public expectation? Will a spectacular clash with figures like Delyan Peevski and Borisov follow, or will everything remain in the realm of rhetoric?
Will Radev arrest Peevski and Borisov? Will he encroach on the status quo, or will he accept it as a thing of the past. The parody of Borisov's arrest during Kiril Petkov's time will not be repeated, because then the action seemed more like a political spectacle than a legally sound operation - a noisy beginning, followed by a quiet failure.
People's expectations this time are higher and more concrete. It is not about showy actions, but about real results - working institutions, an effective prosecutor's office and an end to the feeling of impunity. Radev has already spoken about a new Supreme Judicial Council and a new Prosecutor General, which directly strikes at the heart of the judicial system, directly strikes at the status quo, which wants to have a Prosecutor General on call. But here comes the cold shower of political reality - Will there be the necessary votes?
The reform of the judiciary does not go through presidential decrees, but through a parliament, in which compromises often make intentions meaningless. Without a stable majority, any request for a “cleansing“ risks becoming yet another unfinished reform.
Radev faces a classic dilemma: either he will capitalize on public trust with real actions and clear results, or he will become yet another politician who talks loudly but acts cautiously. The difference this time is that the credit for trust is limited – and society no longer applauds promises, but demands actions and consequences. Will we see arrests? This is no longer a question of political will, but of evidence, institutions and the rule of law. Anything else would simply be a repetition of a spectacle already seen.