Just a Handful of Bulgarian Mayors are Women

Tatyana Dimitrova, FLGR

No. 4/2000

The image of the female politician is viewed as an aberration.

The political parties don t know and don t represent the interests of female voters.

What is praise for male mayor is a flaw for a female one.

Female mayors are incomparable to male ones.

Our motivation is stronger.

These are just a few of the statements shared at the workshop for female mayors held on March 30, 2000, in Sofia. The workshop was organized by the Women s Alliance for Development Foundation and USAID s Local Government Initiative Program. The meetings was the first of its type for the new term and was attended by 5 of the 13 female mayors of Bulgarian municipalities. Namely, these were the mayors of Borovo, Vurshets, Gorna Malina, Novo Selo and Souvorovo. The other participants included representatives of NGOs dealing with women s problems and local government development.

Information on completed NGO projects supporting the equality of sexes with regard to the opportunities for involvement in government was shared at the meeting. The quoted survey results showed that only 9% of the mayors and 24% of the councilors in Bulgaria are women. At the same time, the women account for 63% of municipal administration employees and for 75% of support staff in all sectors[1]. In government, the women are staff, despite the fact that they account for 53% of total population and 45% of the workforce. The glass ceiling , that invisible vertical barrier in society that seems non-existent but in reality drastically reduces the number of women in top government positions, was identified as one of the reasons for the low number of women in government.

The participants had the opportunity to learn about many current programs and project funding competitions that their municipalities and NGOs could apply to. At the end of the workshop, we asked three of them several questions and they were so kind to share their views on the discussed issues for the readers of our newsletter.

Ms. Antoaneta Staneva, mayor, Municipality of Novo Selo: By background, I m an engineer. This is my second terms as a mayor. In general, the problems are clear to me. There are no easy solutions but I have committed myself to finding them.

Ms. Anelia Rousseva Genova, mayor, Municipality of Gorna Malina: This is my first term as a mayor. During the last term, I was a deputy-mayor. By background, I m an economist. I ve worked at the Labor Bureau prior to joining the local administration. The problems that were discussed today are known to me from another point of view as well. I m married and I have two children.

Ms. Biserka Hristova, mayor, Municipality of Borovo: I have a degree in Bulgarian language and am a teacher by background. I have worked in schools for 29 years, of which 14 years a principal of a primary school.

Is it easy for a female candidate to win the elections?

A. Staneva: Since this is my second term, I had to deal with the negative aspects of my first term. In general, a female running for a mayor is in a more disadvantageous position than a male. Almost all of my counterparts had to overcome three or four male candidates.

B Hristova: Both easy and at the same time extremely difficult. Easy, because if you set up a specific goal and make the necessary decision, it is easy to overcome your own ego. Difficult, because you have to prove to everyone that you re the best, the most competitive person, the person who can solve some of their problems.

Are there any purely feminine qualities that help women in government?

A. Staneva: Voters tend to be much more demanding to women. They insist that the female running for mayor be from a good family, have good children and tidy home. They want the female mayor to be as responsible and decisive as a man. Even more, they want her to have a man s strong hand, to govern in a man s way. A women is always better oriented than a man. Secondly, a female mayor is able to faster react to problems, is more adaptive and, most of all, is more responsible.

A. Genova: Women pay more attention to detail, are more personal in their work and treat people with more understanding. Women incorporate a lot of emotions in their work, and to some extent that isn t so good, but on the other hand it s useful when looking for the social effect of the implementation of government in general or of individual decisions. Men don t worry that much how the people accept them, while this is always a driving force for the women. In many respects, when the goals are very specific women become very ambitious.

B. Hristova: I m convinced that best qualities of a women who is joining government are her frankness, honesty, warmth, clarity when raising issues, ability to defend her position, relentlessness in achieving goals and, last but not least, the reasonable use of her female charm when necessary.

What are the sacrifices that women in government have to do?

A. Staneva: A woman sacrifices many things: her family, her children, her tranquility, her free time. Often, she also sacrifices some personal pleasures; there are things that female mayors can t do that are otherwise allowed. But it s a worthy sacrifice when you know that you re doing it to prove yourself, to convince your voters that they have made the right choice.

A. Genova: The first thing to sacrifice is the time you have for your family, for your closest ones, for your children. The children take this very hard, especially when they re young. You don t have much time for housework as well. On the other hand, this means that all family members have to assume equal responsibilities.

How would you comment the fact that this term the female mayors are twice less than during the previous one?

A. Staneva: A woman in a public position is more vulnerable, more sensitive and less able to bear the indecent things that sometimes accompany election campaigns. The women start asking themselves if its worthy to sacrifice so much simply to prove that they are capable and have not misled the people who voted for them.

A. Genova: My personal impression is that the November elections were the dirtiest. Discrediting information was disseminated through the media with the sole purpose of eliminating some candidates. In general, the women react more emotionally to such events, which to some extent explains their retreat from politics in general and from local government in particular.

B. Hristova: I think that women retreat from politics because those of them who have the capabilities to be politicians find it very difficult to progress. It s a public secret that these women have to fight many battles with men to get the places that, I m convinced, they deserve, as women are very innovative, have female instinct and possess the warmth that could solve many issues and unlock many doors. The key is in the unequal competition in which the women have to participate. Many women were unable to establish themselves as fighters. I believe that, in principle, women should have a better place in government and we ll try to make that happen.

Do you share the opinion that was expressed at the meeting that women have a better chance to be elected mayors in smaller municipalities?

A. Genova: Yes, I do, because in smaller municipalities the competition is between personalities. The people know each other and that is decisive; the political party it doesn t matter that much, what matters is the person.

B. Hristova: I definitely agree with this conclusion. In smaller municipalities, where you have grown up in front of people s eyes, you vote for a person, for the person you trust. In a smaller municipality the mayor is always in touch with his or hers voters. Even while going to work, mayors meet hundreds of people and their work day begins the minute they go out of their homes. On the other hand, the mayors of large community may not meet their voters for months. In smaller communities, mayors live with the difficulties and the successes of the community and solve problems immediately. The contact with the citizens is very quick, as in a small community people tend to always seek assistance from the mayor, from the local government.