Rift among Bulgaria's Socialists ahead of EU Vote

Bulgaria's Socialists expelled former party chairman and the country's ex-president Georgy Parvanov on Friday, as a rift in the party's ranks grows ahead of European elections seen as crucial to the survival of the current government.

The expulsion of Parvanov and nine others came after the ex-leader said his newly formed Alternative for Bulgarian Revival (ABV) movement would run a separate list of candidates in the May vote for the Europeean Parliament.

According to the latest opinion polls, ABV stands a chance to grab one deputy seat, which would dent vital support for the Socialist BSP party, which could end up with five European lawmakers to the conservative GERB's potential six.

Observers say the result of the European vote could affect the fate of the government of technocrat Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski, who is backed by the Socialists and a Turkish minority party but lacks a majority in Bulgaria's 240-seat parliament.

Oresharski has faced months of street protests calling for his resignation, starting almost immediately after he took office in May 2013, which only recently calmed down.

The 56-year-old Parvanov led the BSP between 1996 and 2000 and served two successive terms as Bulgarian president from 2002 to 2012.

But he was accused by Socialists on Friday of "breaking the unity within the party."

Parvanov has denied the accusations and challenged the national council's right to expel party members.