Slovenian PM steps down

On Monday, EU-member state Slovenia faced the task selecting a new head of government, as its current leader, Alenka Bratusek, stepped down from her post. The decision to leave after only 13 months as prime minister followed a vote within her party, Positive Slovenia, which booted her out of its own leadership.

Early elections "would be best," Bratusek said, referring to the different options parliament and the president now have before them.

Without a head of government, the president or a group of at least 10 members can propose a replacement candidate within 30 days. However, if they abstain from doing so - or, alternatively, if their chosen candidate does not garner a majority in parliament - the president can call early elections.

Roughly a week ago, the 44-year-old financial expert lost a vote to her party's former leader, Zoran Jankovic, which saw him regain the party's support and his old position as its head.

The return of Jankovic has further threatened the stability of Slovenia's center-left coalition, whose members are now threatening to leave the government. The 61-year-old lawmaker, who currently serves as mayor of Slovenia's capital city, Ljubljana, is embroiled in several corruption scandals.

Bratusek helped lead the eurozone member away from the prospect of an international bailout in December by injecting 3 billion euros ($4.16 billion) into several of Slovenia's ailing banks.

Fitch response to Bratusek's announcement last week was one of concern, warning that the political upheaval could prompt a downgrade from Ljubljana's BBB+ status.

"Political instability poses a risk to the structural reform agenda in 2014-15, including the privatization of key state-owned enterprises," Fitch said.

kms/jr (AP, AFP, Reuters)