Bulgaria’s president asks Socialists to form government

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgaria’s president has given the Socialist Party a mandate to form a new government in a last attempt to avoid the country’s fifth general election in two years. Although the chances of success are dim, Socialist leader Kornelia Ninova said her party would make every effort “for the formation of a regular government.” The two main groups in Bulgaria’s parliament already have failed to find enough support to lead their own coalitions. The Socialist Party finished fifth in Bulgaria’s Oct. 2 election. The center-right GERB party and the Democratic Bulgaria alliance have already said they wouldn’t back a Socialist-led government, mainly because the Socialists have repeatedly voted against military aid to Ukraine.