Current President Yotova finished first in the first round of presidential elections in Bulgaria

According to the data announced by the Bulgarian Central Election Commission (CEC), while 99.95 percent of the votes were counted, Yotova and Valchev took first place with 34.75 percent of the votes.

Former Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov and vice-presidential candidate Georgi Kandev received 31.95 percent of the votes.

On the other hand, in the first round, 4.42 percent of registered voters chose the "I do not support anyone" option.

It was evaluated that the participation rate in the presidential elections held for the eighth time since 1992 in Bulgaria was at the lowest level compared to previous elections. The highest participation was recorded in the capital Sofia, and the lowest was recorded in Kardzhali province, where Turks live densely.

Since the participation rate in the election remained below 50 percent and no candidate pair received more than half of the valid votes, the election went to the second round.

Yotova-Valchev and Gyurov-Kandev duos will compete in the second round on November 1.

The CEC is expected to announce the final results of the first round of the presidential elections on October 27.