The party, There Is Such a People (ITN), now faces an almost impossible task of building a stable coalition after attempts by two larger parties – the center-right GERB and the reformist We Continue the Change (PP) – proved unsuccessful.

If the populist ITN, which won only 16 seats in the 240-seat assembly in the June 8 election, also fails, Bulgaria could face its seventh parliamentary election since 2021.

ITN has no set deadline for attempting to broker a new government.

“We are extremely aware of what a serious crisis the country is in,” said Toshko Yordanov, the parliamentary leader of ITN.

“We will hold talks with all parliamentary parties, including with independent deputies. The negotiation process will be extremely transparent, in front of everyone,” he added.

June’s election was triggered by the collapse in March of a coalition comprising GERB, which had held power for much of the previous 15 years, and the PP party.

GERB came first in June, winning 68 seats, while the PP secured 39. Though they are both broadly pro-EU and pro-market, they are dogged by personal rivalries and disagreements.

As the EU’s poorest member, Bulgaria urgently needs a stable, functioning government to accelerate the flow of EU funds into its aging infrastructure and to move towards joining the eurozone and fully participate in Europe’s open-border Schengen area.

Plans to join the eurozone have already been delayed twice due to missed inflation targets.