Bulgaria Heads to Presidential Runoff on November 1 as Iotova Leads Gyurov

Bulgaria will hold a presidential runoff on November 1 after no candidate won outright in Sunday, October 25 voting, official results showed. Incumbent Iliana Iotova led the first round, short of the 50 percent threshold needed to win outright.

With 95 percent of votes counted, Iotova had 34.6 percent against 32 percent for former caretaker prime minister Andrey Gyurov, in a field of 27 candidates, Reuters reported. Provisional results released Monday morning, after 98.9 percent of ballots were counted, put Iotova at 34.7 percent and Gyurov at 32 percent, Le Monde reported. Far-right candidate Konstantin Kostadinov won 12.6 percent of the vote, in third place.

Record low turnout

Turnout was a record low at about 22 percent of 6.6 million registered voters. Le Monde called it the highest abstention since the 1992 presidential election, and Reuters also reported turnout at only about 22 percent of eligible voters, citing polling agencies. To win in the first round a candidate needed a majority of votes and turnout above 50 percent of registered voters, CNN reported.

After polls closed at 8 p.m., Iotova said: "I want to share a certain worry and tell Bulgarians that it is an illusion if they think we can change something in this country without (them) voting."

The two runoff candidates

Iotova, formerly vice president, became acting president in January after Rumen Radev resigned to enter the parliamentary race, which he won. Radev supports Iotova, and both have called for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine, Reuters reported. A victory for Iotova would make her Bulgaria's first elected female president.

Gyurov, who served as caretaker prime minister this year, is supported by pro-Western reformist parties. He has long expressed support for Ukraine, and signed a security cooperation agreement with Kyiv during his time as premier, Reuters reported. Gyurov told supporters this week: "I want Bulgaria to have a voice of its own in Europe. A reliable NATO ally that defends its interests through preparedness, strong diplomacy and a clear position." He also said: "Bulgaria needs an active president, one who can explain decisions and unite Bulgarian citizens."

Presidents in Bulgaria are elected directly for a five-year term. The post is primarily ceremonial, and the president leads the armed forces and can veto legislation, CNN reported.

The campaign backdrop

The vote was the first major test for the Moscow-friendly Progressive Bulgaria party of Prime Minister Rumen Radev after its triumph in parliamentary elections in April. It was held against a backdrop of economic hardship and drone attacks on Black Sea shipping, CNN reported.

Both leading candidates condemned a series of drone attacks on merchant ships off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast that likely killed some two dozen international seafarers. The government sought allied assistance to bolster maritime security. Bulgaria has stopped short of directly accusing Russia over the attacks, but Radev said their outcome benefits the Russian Federation, Reuters reported.

Analyst Vessela Tcherneva of the European Council on Foreign Relations said rising living costs, especially energy, disappointed Progressive Bulgaria voters. She noted the party won 1.5 million votes in April and garnered only about a third of that on Sunday, Le Monde reported.