Political deadlock in the country / Bulgarian citizens head to the ballot boxes today

2026-04-19 09:07:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Political deadlock in the country / Bulgarian citizens head to the ballot boxes

Bulgarian citizens will head to the ballot boxes today in the hope of ending the political deadlock that has long engulfed the country.

The snap vote comes after the resignation of a Conservative-led government amid nationwide anti-corruption protests last December.

Bulgaria, the EU's poorest member, has been engulfed in a political crisis since 2021, when the conservative government of Boyko Borissov fell, also amid anti-corruption rallies.

Who are the contestants in Bulgaria's elections?

A newly formed center-left grouping under former President Rumen Radev, Progressive Bulgaria, is seen as one of the favorites to win Sunday's elections, with opinion polls suggesting it could receive 35% support.

Radev, a former air force general who was Bulgaria's president for nine years before resigning in January to run in the election, has vowed to fight what he calls the "oligarchic model of governance" in the country.

He has also supported the idea of ??Bulgaria renewing ties with Russia, while being critical of sending military aid to Ukraine as it fights the ongoing occupation by Moscow's troops.

However, he has officially denounced Russia's invasion and said he will not use his country's veto to block EU aid to Kiev if elected.

Radev also opposes the EU's green energy policy, which he considers naive "in a world without rules."

Opinion polls show that Borisov's pro-European GERB party, which led the last government, is likely to come in second, with around 20%, ahead of the liberal PP-DB party.

Borissov, who has served three terms as prime minister, has highlighted the success of his GERB party, saying it had "fulfilled the dreams of the 1990s," including leading Bulgaria to join the eurozone this year.

High participation is expected.

Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. local time (04:00 GMT) and will close at 8 p.m. local time (17:00 GMT), with a high turnout expected in the Balkan country of around 6.5 million after just 39% turnout in the 2024 elections. Preliminary results are expected on Monday.

Bulgaria is a member state of the European Union and NATO. It joined the eurozone on January 1, shortly after entering the border-free Schengen travel zone. /DW