The leaders of We Continue the Change/Democratic Bulgaria (PP/DB) have not yet made any official comment after the decision by Mariya Gabriel, nominated for prime minister by GERB party, to officially withdraw the government-forming mandate she was handed. Mariya Gabriel also stated that GERB would not support a cabinet on the second or the third government-forming mandate either.

• Mariya Gabriel withdraws her candidacy for Prime Minister from Parliament
• Mariya Gabriel has officially withdrawn her candidacy for prime minister

The address by outgoing Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov, who turned to GERB/SDS to urge them to abide by the agreement from nine months ago for a rotation of the prime minister and deputy prime minister only, and called on them not to throw the country into the chaos of early elections, was left without a comment as well. The only reaction was a post on Facebook by PP/DB co-chairman Kiril Petkov, who writes that he believes it is not the arguments over ministerial seats, but the agreement the negotiating teams from PP/DB and GERB/SDS were working on that is the reason why the negotiations fell through.

At a press conference last night, Mariya Gabriel stated that the reason for the failure of the talks were the constantly changing demands by the partners from PP/DB. After GERB agreed to the current ministers of defence and of energy keeping their posts, as demanded by PP, she said PP also demanded the replacement of the minister of the interior, and that was the last straw, Mariya Gabriel stated.