Lawyer Iva Miteva joins the Ministry of Transport as Deputy Minister in a surprise move

Iva Miteva's political career is entering a sector unexpected for her – transport. Known to the general public as a protégé of Slavi Trifonov, a Member of Parliament from "There Is Such a People" (ITN), and Speaker of the 45th and 46th National Assembly, the lawyer is preparing to take on the post of Deputy Minister of Transport.

Miteva will serve as a deputy to Minister Georgi Peev. The appointment has not yet been officially announced, but she confirmed in an interview with "Eurocom" that she is becoming a deputy minister. Thus, the former parliamentary leader moves from the legislative to the executive branch, in a field in which she has not worked directly before.

Iva Miteva is a lawyer and holds a PhD in constitutional law. For many years, she was part of the Legal Directorate of the National Assembly, including serving as its head. It was from there that her political rise began when, as an ITN figure, she became one of the stars of the new formation and headed the parliament.

After Slavi Trifonov's party began to lose influence, Miteva left ITN. At the beginning of 2023, together with Lyubomir Karimanski, she founded the "Zaedno" (Together) coalition, which ran in the parliamentary elections but failed to enter the National Assembly and subsequently fell apart. Miteva returned to her previous position in the parliamentary administration but was left without a job after the Legal Directorate was closed during the "Zhelyazkov" cabinet.

Before the last elections, there was intense talk that Miteva had reoriented toward "Progressive Bulgaria". Media reported that she had even been proposed as the head of the party's list in Ruse, but the local community reacted sharply, and that did not materialize. Thus, she did not become an MP, but now she is receiving a managerial post after all – that of deputy minister.

The question remains what a lawyer, who has spent her entire professional career dealing mainly with regulations and the legal framework, understands about transport and communications. Her appointment fits into a series of staffing decisions by Radev's party that have sparked criticism regarding the unsuitable choice of individuals for key positions.

Just days ago, Prof. Georgi Kaschiev – a world-renowned nuclear expert – was removed from the board of NPP Kozloduy, and in his place, Gen. Dragomir Dimitrov was appointed – a graduate of the Simeonovo academy, a philologist by education, and former head of the State Intelligence Agency. Now, the appointment of a lawyer without experience in transport as a deputy minister further intensifies critical commentary.

Pulsations

An interesting detail is that Iva Miteva's appointment comes immediately after a change in the rules of procedure of the Ministry of Transport. At its meeting on Wednesday, the "Radev" cabinet decided to increase the number of deputy ministers from three to four.

In the government's motives, it is stated that this is being done to "refine the functions of administrative units in accordance with changes in the regulatory framework and recommendations of the National Audit Office." It is not specified which recommendations exactly are meant and how they necessitate the expansion of the ministry's political leadership.

The decision to bloat the ministry's leadership staff stands in clear conflict with the public assurances of Radev and his party that they would work to limit state spending and oppose the increase of posts and administration. Thus, Miteva's appointment becomes not only a staffing decision but a political symbol – an example of the discrepancy between stated intentions and actual practice.