Fatherland Front (Bulgaria)

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Fatherland Front (Bulgarian: Отечествен фронт, OF) was Bulgaria’s pro-communist political movement, formed on 17 July 1942 during World War II and dissolved in June 1990. Its ideology was communism (Marxism-Leninism; Stalinism until 1956) and its position was far-left; its color was red. It included the Zveno movement, the Bulgarian Workers Party (the communists), part of the Bulgarian Agrarian National Union (BANU), and the Bulgarian Social Democratic Workers Party, who joined to oppose Bulgaria’s pro-German regime. At first, the groups worked together without a single leader, but the Bulgarian Communist Party soon became dominant.

In 1944, after the Soviet Union declared war on Bulgaria, the OF helped carry out a coup on 9 September 1944 and declared war on Germany and the Axis. The OF government, led by Kimon Georgiev (from Zveno), signed a ceasefire with the Soviet Union on 28 October 1944. In 1945 many BANU and Social Democratic leaders left the OF and formed opposition groups. After the 1946 elections, Georgiev resigned and Georgi Dimitrov, the communist leader, became Prime Minister. Bulgaria became the People's Republic on 15 September 1946 after a referendum.

Between 1948 and 1949, all other parties in the OF dissolved or merged into the Bulgarian Communist Party, and the OF became a broad front under communist control. From 1947 onward, it was effectively the only legal political organization in Bulgaria. Voters were presented with a single OF list in elections from 1949 to 1986, with official results claiming over 99% support. With the fall of communism, the Fatherland Front was dissolved in 1990.