Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva today submitted to the National Assembly the name of Maria Filipova as a candidate for the position of Deputy Ombudsman. Filipova was ranked first with 15 points by a five-member evaluation committee, which heard the three candidates proposed by non-governmental organisations on 14 August this year.

18 August 2025

Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva today submitted to the National Assembly the name of Maria Filipova as a candidate for the position of Deputy Ombudsman. Filipova was ranked first with 15 points by a five-member evaluation committee, which heard the three candidates proposed by non-governmental organisations on 14 August this year.

The esteemed panel of legal experts, consisting of Professor Tsvetan Sivkov, Professor Gabriela Belova, Associate Professor Ralitsa Ilkova, Associate Professor Aneta Antonova and Associate Professor Hristo Ormandzhiev, ranked the candidates according to a pre-announced methodology, awarding first place with 15 points to Maria Filipova, nominated by the Bulgarian National Association of Active Consumers. Second place with 13 points went to Marina Kisyova de Geus, nominated by Ekaterina Karavelova Foundation, and third place with 12 points went to Denitsa Dimitrova, nominated by the National Network for Children.

The hearing of the candidates was conducted in accordance with the procedure, in a public and transparent manner, and was broadcast in real time on the Ombudsman website and on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/live/9oI5AE7bGrA?si=143c6yvUGHtnHqvt

The nominees presented concepts for their work as deputy ombudsman, after which they answered questions from the panel members and non-governmental organisations—the Bulgarian Institute for Legal Initiatives Foundation, the Bulgarian Fund for Women Foundation, and the Bulgarian Centre for Not-for-Profit Law Foundation.

The letter to the National Assembly and the minutes of the hearing are available here: https://www.ombudsman.bg/bg/n/ombudsmanat-velislava-delcheva-predlaga-na-2325

Procedural rules are available here: https://www.ombudsman.bg/bg/p/protsedura-za-nominirane-na-zamestnik-ombud-608