Sofia, March 23 (BTA) - Ahead of the April 4 general elections
in Bulgaria, Daily News is running a series of backgrounders for
 the front-runners: eight parties and coalitions which polls
show to be certain or likely, to various degrees, to win seats
in the next Parliament.

The first is VMRO - Bulgarian National Movement.

History

VMRO refers to the abbreviated name of the Internal Macedonian
Revolutionary Organization, a Bulgarian irredentist
revolutionary and political organization whose earliest version
was founded in the then Ottoman-controlled historical region of
Macedonia in 1893 and of which VMRO - Bulgarian National
Movement is a self-proclaimed successor. The organization was
initially restored in 1990 as an NGO called VMRO - Union of
Macedonian Associations, the latter being educational
organizations of descendants of refugees from Macedonia that
existed in Bulgaria under the communist regime.

Ideology

Notions like nationalism, national conservatism and right-wing
populism that are associated with the party only apply to
certain elements of VMRO's positions. Even tenets routinely
associated with it as anti-globalism and anti-immigration are
highly nuanced in its policies. VMRO's ties with the European
Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) (the Bulgarian party's two
MEPs are part of that political group in the European
Parliament) also blur the focus, as the ECR is described as
economically liberal, conservative and Christian democratic. In
Bulgaria, VMRO's "rightist" image is to a certain extent a
by-product of the party's vehement rejection of the policies of
the Bulgarian Socialist (formerly Communist) Party (BSP).
Traditionally, VMRO projects a patriotic, non-partisan, and
extra-ideologicical image. The party gradually becomes a
proponent of the enlightened European nationalism of the 19th
and 20th c, which may seem outdated but continues to appeal to
many educated and well-integrated voters.

Platform, Policies, Positions

Bulgarian voters can easily extrapolate VMRO's positions from
its systematically anti-Turkish rhetoric criticising President
Erdogan's governance. VMRO's anti-Roma rhetoric gets even more
readily recognizable messages across to voters thanks to its
concept to solve the problem with outcast Roma groups through
community service and control of teen births. VMRO's
self-proclaimed status as "the most patriotic and most Bulgarian
 organization" is borne out by its sector policies, promoting
free enterprise by removing administrative hurdles to business,
a balanced state-business relationship, and protecting Bulgarian
 agriculture, production, etc. Bulgarian family, Bulgarian
children, Bulgarian language and Eastern Orthodox Christianity
are seen by VMRO as coming under external threats, and their
defence is forcefully present in all the party's messages.
Traditionally, VMRO pays special attention to Bulgarian
minorities abroad and in particular in the Balkans. The party
insists that members of the Bulgarian diaspora, especially in
Ukraine and Moldova, "should be given an option to settle in
Bulgaria and develop." VMRO has a strongly worded doctrine on
Bulgaria's relations with North Macedonia and is one of the
staunchest supporters of taking a hard line on that country's EU
 integration, demanding guarantees that Skopje will not join the
 Union if it persists in pursuing its anti-Bulgarian policy.

Tactics, Ambitions, Goals

VMRO's style is acerbic and invariably non-politically correct.
Typical examples include the party's extreme rejection of the
Istanbul Convention, same-sex marriages and the rights of the
LGBT+ community, penal policy and the admission of immigrants.
The party openly campaigns for the reintroduction of the death
penalty, conscription and educational qualifications for voting.
 VMRO's decision to run on a straight ticket in the
parliamentary elections came as a surprise, considering the
party's successful collaboration with its partner National Front
 for Salvation of Bulgaria (NFSB) within the United Patriots
power-sharing coalition. VMRO will be competing for the votes of
 nationalistically or patriotically minded voters with several
other contestants in this part of the political spectrum: NFSB,
Ataka, There Is Such A People, BSP, Vazrazhdane, etc.

Personalities

VMRO leader Krassimir Karakachanov is the party's most popular
figure. Born in 1965, he is a qualified historian and has
steered the party through various coalitions in government or
opposition. In the third Boyko Borissov Cabinet, Karakachanov
serves as Deputy Prime Minister for Public Order and Security
and Minister of Defence.

Campaign Messages

In Karakachanov's words, VMRO prioritizes incomes, family and
security in its campaign. Nominating candidates beyond its
traditional political turf confirms the perception of the party
as defying the standard left-right dichotomy. RY/MT, LG