Furthermore, the broader legislative framework has seen a number of reforms over the years, in particular through the amendments of the Judicial System Act in 2016 and of the Criminal Procedure Code in 2017.
[8] A pub owner in a small village offered Roma voters US$40–$55 to vote a certain way, with the money paid only if the political party in question won.
[10] The Venice Commission has raised concern about the Soviet model of Bulgaria's Prosecution, which turns it into “a source of corruption and blackmail.”[11] Civil activists have demanded the resignation of Bulgaria's General Prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov for some time now, due to his alleged involvement in high-profile corruption cases.
By 2014, the Bulgarian government was accused of mismanaging the economy so badly that the European Union froze billions of euros in aid.
[18][19] The cabinets of Boyko Borisov have been in power through most of the decade, establishing a system of impunity for high-profile crime, and favoritism of certain local companies.
Approximately 22% of GDP is lost to corruption each year, and a number of major foreign companies, like ČEZ Group, have withdrawn from Bulgaria.
[23] Mass demonstrations continued against the government of Plamen Oresharski, which also resigned following the appointment of Delyan Peevski as head of the State Agency for National Security.
[28][29] In 2018, two journalists were detained and later released by police while they investigated a massive scheme to drain EU funds by a company associated with a number of high-profile government procurement projects.
[30] In Bulgaria, the period since the report of November 2018 to around 2021 was characterised by relative political stability, though a particular controversy emerged around allegations concerning the acquisition of properties at below-market prices by high-level officials and politicians.
[2] In the November 2018 CVM report, benchmarks one (judicial independence), two (legal framework) and six (organized crime) have been provisionally closed, noting that Bulgaria has made significant progress in these areas.