Conservative opposition shatters ruling Socialists (3rd Roundup)

Sofia - The conservative opposition dominated Bulgarian parliamentary elections Sunday, inflicting a huge defeat on Socialist Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev's coalition, according to exit polls and projections. Sofia Mayor Boyko Borisov's GERB party was just one seat short of the 121 needed for a majority in the 240-seat assembly, the Sova Harris polling agency said in its projection. The conservative Blue Coalition, tipped to win 14 seats, already pledged allegiance to Borisov. Wading through Bulgaria's complex mixed electoral system, the agency predicted 39 seats for the Socialists, 35 for their junior coalition partners, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms of ethnic Turks, 22 for the right-wing extremist Ataka and 10 for another new, conservative party called Order, Law, Justice. Borisov already said he was 'taking responsibility for Bulgaria's future' and promised to put a cabinet in place swiftly. With the election, Stanishev paid the price for failing to crack down on corruption and for the ongoing economic downturn, just 18 months after ushering his country into the European Union. Embezzlement of EU money spurred Brussels into suspending or scrapping 1 billion dollars in aid to Bulgaria last year. Even Sunday's polls served as a way out of prison for some of the officials on trial for the embezzlement, as they ran for seats in the Parliament, with the law guaranteeing them immunity during their campaign and term of office, should they win. While most Bulgarians euphorically counted down until the EU accession, they quickly faced off with the reality of being by far the poorest country of the 27-memmber bloc, with an average money salary of just 300 dollars and even smaller pensions. The former premier and abdicated King Simeon II, whose National movement was a part of the government over the last eight years, fared even worse and was ousted from the Parliament, falling below the 4-per-cent threshold. The outcome, even with the unofficial figures, marked Bulgaria's clear turn to the political right and averted a politically and economically costly stalemate, which some analysts had predicted along with a quick repeat of the elections. As in the vote for the European Parliament a month ago, election day was again marred by allegations of vote-buying, widely practiced by parties among the poor, particularly among the Roma, a 5-per-cent minority.