Bulgarian elections, we go to the run-off between Jotova and Gyurov: the outgoing president ahead

On Sunday 25 October, Bulgaria was called to vote in the first round of the presidential elections, but to know the name of the next head of state, a run-off will be needed. The results are not yet definitive, but they seem to confirm the exit polls released after the polls closed: the outgoing president Ilijana Jotova - also supported by progressive Bulgaria under Prime Minister Rumen Radev - is ahead of the other candidates but failed to obtain reconfirmation in the first round. We then go to the run-off on the agenda for Sunday 1 November: the challenge in the second round is between the socialist Jotova and the second-placed Andrey Gyurov, former liberal and pro-European prime minister. The turnout was low, around 22%, far from the 50% of eligible voters expected not to go to the second round.

The results

The results, not yet definitive, give the outgoing socialist president Ilijana Jotova in the lead in the first round with around 35% of the votes: she is supported by Prime Minister Radev and his Progressive Bulgaria party. According to Andrey Gyurov, supported by the liberal pro-Europeans of Democratic Bulgaria allied with the Continuing Change (PP) party: it stopped at around 32%. The run-off, therefore, will be between Jotova and Gyurov. In third place, with 15% of the votes, was Kostadin Kostadinov, leader of the nationalist Vazrazhdane (Rebirth) party. In total, there were 27 presidential candidates.

Ballot between Jotova and Gyurov

To win in the first round, Jotova would have had to win at least 50% + 1 of the votes with a turnout of at least 50%. The turnout, however, stopped at around 22% and no one came close to the necessary percentage. The run-off is scheduled for Sunday 1 November: Jotova will have to face Gyurov.

The context

Bulgarian citizens called to vote in this first round of the presidential elections were around 6.5 million. Even if the country is a parliamentary republic and the powers of the head of state are limited and mostly representative, the president is still elected by universal suffrage. His mandate is five years and can be renewed only once. The turnout, as mentioned, today stopped at around 22% and set a negative record. According to experts, the low voter turnout is also due to the climate of social and economic uncertainty: after Bulgaria's entry into the Eurozone, the country is grappling with a sharp increase in the price of food, services and heating tariffs. According to the most optimistic estimates, inflation in 2026 would reach over 5%. The fragmentation of the political framework also weighs heavily.

The presidential elections in Bulgaria

The first round of the presidential elections in Bulgaria was held on Sunday 25 October: the polls remained open from 7am to 8pm local time (from 6am to 7pm in Italy). The previous presidential elections were held in 2021: Rumen Radev, who had also won in 2016, was confirmed for a second term. Last January, surprisingly, Radev resigned from the office of president to participate in the parliamentary elections held in April: his place was taken on 23 January 2026 by vice-president Ilijana Jotova, who then became president in office, while Rumen Radev became prime minister after the victory of his new political movement Bulgaria progressive (born as a populist and generally pro-Russian anti-corruption party).