Pro-Russian Iliana Yotova won the presidential election in Bulgaria

On Sunday, November 1, the second round of the presidential election took place in Bulgaria. With nearly all votes counted, the incumbent head of state, Iliana Yotova—who supports dialogue with Russia and opposes providing aid to Ukraine—has secured victory.

 

As of 5:00 a.m. Kyiv time, the Central Election Commission had already processed 99.56% of the votes. According to the tally, the pro-Russian ticket of Yotova and vice-presidential candidate Kiril Vilchev has secured 57.69% of the vote.

Meanwhile, her opponent, the pro-Ukrainian and pro-Western former Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov, along with vice-presidential candidate Georgy Kandev, received 39.35% of the vote.

In addition, there was an option to “not support anyone”—2.96% of voters chose this option.

Andrey Gyurov has already acknowledged the results of this election.

“We accept the results as they stand. This is how the citizens of Bulgaria voted. Nothing was in vain, and the best is yet to come,” he said.

Source: BNT

In the first round, held on October 25, Yotova received 34.8% of the vote. Gyurov received 32%.

Russia’s war against Ukraine lends the election foreign policy significance. Voters will also decide whether Bulgaria—an EU and NATO member located on the Alliance’s eastern flank—will pursue a more consistent pro-Western course, which can be expected from Gyurov. Yotova, a former journalist, has, on the other hand, repeatedly made pro-Russian statements.