Other offices

Leader of the Union of Democratic Forces
In office 1 October 2005 – 22 May 2007
Preceded by	Nadezhda Neynsky
Succeeded by	Plamen Yurukov
Member of the National Assembly
In office 11 July 2005 – 14 September 2007
Constituency	16th MMC - Plovdiv
In office 12 January 1995 – 11 November 1996
Constituency	16th MMC - Plovdiv
Deputy Minister of Justice
In office 8 November 1991 – 30 December 1992
Prime Minister	Philip Dimitrov
Minister	Svetoslav Luchnikov

Personal details

Born

Petar Stefanov Stoyanov

25 May 1952 (age 73)
Plovdiv, PR Bulgaria

Political party

SDS (1989–1997, 2002-2007)

Other political
affiliations

Independent (1997–2002)

Spouse

Antonina Stoyanova

(m. 1978)

Children

Stefan (born 1979)
Teofana (born 1990)

Alma mater

Sofia University (LL.B, LL.M)

Occupation

Statesman
politician
lawyer

Petar Stefanov Stoyanov (Bulgarian: Петър Стефанов Стоянов, born on May 25, 1952) is a Bulgarian politician. He served as the second President of Bulgaria from 1997 to 2002. He was a member of the Union of Democratic Forces. Stoyanov won the second democratic election in Bulgaria's modern history. During his time as president, Bulgaria made big steps toward joining NATO and the European Union.

Petar Stoyanov: Bulgaria's Second President
Family Life
Awards and Honors
See also

Petar Stoyanov: Bulgaria's Second President

Early Life and Education

Petar Stoyanov was born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, on May 25, 1952. After finishing high school, he studied law at the Saint Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia. He graduated with high honors in 1976. For the next fifteen years, he worked as a civil lawyer in Plovdiv. Besides his native Bulgarian, Stoyanov also speaks English and German.

Entering Politics

Stoyanov started his political career in 1990. This was soon after major political changes happened in Bulgaria in late 1989. He helped start a "Democracy Club" in Plovdiv and became its chairman. Later that year, he became a spokesperson for the Plovdiv Coordinating Council. This council belonged to the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF). The UDF was a new group that opposed the old ruling parties.

In 1991, Stoyanov joined Bulgaria's first government after the communist era. He served as the Deputy Minister of Justice. In 1993, the UDF-led government lost a vote and was replaced. In May 1993, Stoyanov became the President of the UDF Legal Council.

In 1994, he was elected as a Member of Parliament. He was chosen as the Deputy Chairman of the UDF group in Parliament. He also became Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Commission on Youth, Sports, and Tourism. In 1995, he became Deputy Chairman of the UDF, focusing on domestic policy.

Becoming President

On June 1, 1996, Petar Stoyanov won the UDF's primary election. He received 66% of the votes. This made him the UDF's candidate for president. In the first round of the presidential election, he got the most votes. He was ahead of the socialist candidate Ivan Marazov and George Ganchev. In the second round, Stoyanov won against Marazov by a large margin.

Stoyanov officially became President on January 22, 1997. He was the first Bulgarian Head of State after World War II who had never been a member of the Bulgarian Communist Party.

Key Moments as President

At the start of his presidency, Petar Stoyanov played a very important role during a difficult time in Bulgaria. For over a month, many thousands of people protested against the government led by the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP). After the Prime Minister resigned, the BSP wanted to form a new government. However, President Stoyanov refused to approve it.

Instead, on February 4, 1997, he called a meeting of the National Security Consultative Council. This council included representatives from all political parties. During this meeting, the BSP was forced to give up their plan to form a new government. New elections were then scheduled. President Stoyanov appointed a temporary government. This government was led by Stefan Sofianski, the Mayor of Sofia. Later, the UDF won a majority in Parliament and formed a new government. This government was the first after 1989 to serve a full term.

At President Stoyanov's request, the temporary government officially asked for Bulgaria to join NATO. Petar Stoyanov also helped a lot during the Kosovo crisis, strongly supporting the NATO alliance.

During his presidency, Bulgaria started serious talks to join the European Union. The country also joined the United Nations Security Council as a temporary member.

An important historical document, the original manuscript of Istoriya Slavyanobolgarskaya, was returned to the Zograf Monastery library on January 12, 1998, because Stoyanov asked for it.

At Stoyanov's invitation, a sitting US President visited Bulgaria for the first time. Bill Clinton made a historic three-day visit in November 1999.

During his time in office, Stoyanov became the first Head of State in the world to sign a law using an electronic signature. He has been a member of the Internet Society - Bulgaria since July 21, 2000.

2001 Presidential Election

Petar Stoyanov ran for a second term as president in 2001. However, he lost in the second round to Georgi Parvanov. This happened even though Stoyanov was ahead in early polls.

During a TV debate, Stoyanov showed a secret file about another candidate, Bogomil Bonev. This file contained information about Bonev's alleged contacts with people of questionable reputation. Some believe Stoyanov's actions with this document made many undecided voters choose Parvanov instead.

During the campaign, Stoyanov did not get full support from any political party. The Movement for Rights and Freedoms (a party with strong support from the ethnic Turkish minority) supported Georgi Parvanov. The NDSV, a new party led by former monarch Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, was expected to support Stoyanov. However, Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who was then prime minister, announced he would not vote in the second round. This discouraged his supporters.

Stoyanov finished second in the first round of voting with 34.9%. Georgi Parvanov was first with 36.3%. Stoyanov lost the final vote to Parvanov by 8.3%. This loss, along with poor results in earlier elections, marked a difficult period for the Union of Democratic Forces.

Later Political Career

In September 2004, Stoyanov was appointed as a special envoy for Moldova. This role was given to him by the Chairman of the OSCE.

In 2005, Stoyanov returned to active politics. He was elected as a member of the 40th National Assembly in the parliamentary election that year. He became a member of the European Integration Committee and the State Administration Affairs Committee. Because the UDF had a poor election result, he became a strong critic of the party leader. On October 1, 2005, the UDF National Conference elected him as the Chairman of the party.

On May 20, 2007, the first European Parliament election in Bulgaria was held. Stoyanov led the UDF list, but the party did not get enough votes to win a seat. This led to his resignation as leader of the Union of Democratic Forces on May 22, 2007.

Other Activities

Stoyanov serves as an Honorary Co-Chair for the World Justice Project. This project works to strengthen the Rule of Law around the world. In 2002, as a fellow of The German Marshall Fund, Petar Stoyanov gave talks in the US. He spoke at places like the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and New York University.

In 2022, Stoyanov, along with Iuliana Metodieva and Mitko Novkov, started a campaign. This campaign honored volunteers and groups helping refugees from Ukraine in Bulgaria. The main award for overall help went to Olena Kotseva from the Mati Ukraine association.

Family Life

Petar Stoyanov is married to Antonina Stoyanova. They have a son named Stefan, born in 1979, and a daughter named Fany, born in 1990. His younger brother, Emil Stoyanov, used to be a Member of the European Parliament.

Awards and Honors

Slovakia : Grand Cross of the Order of the White Double Cross (1997)
Spain : Collar of the Order of Civil Merit
Romania : Grand Cross with Sash of the Order of the Star of Romania (1998)
Austria : Grand Star of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria (1999)
Denmark : Knight of the Order of the Elephant (2000)