In brief
Bulgarians voted on Sunday in a close second‑round presidential race between Iliana Iotova and Andrey Gurov. The Interior Ministry said the poll opened peacefully but faced 415 reported violations, mainly vote‑buying. Official results are due by Wednesday after exit polls at 8:00 p.m.
On Sunday, Nov. 1, Bulgarians went to the polls to vote in the second round of the presidential and vice‑presidential election, choosing between incumbent President Iliana Iotova (with Kiril Valchev) and challenger Andrey Gurov (with Georgi Kandev).
The runoff followed a closely contested first round held on Oct. 25, in which Iotova‑Valchev received 34.76 % of the vote and Gurov‑Kandev 31.95 %.
Nearly 6.6 million voters are eligible to cast ballots in the election, which will decide Bulgaria’s head of state for a five‑year term.
Exit polls are scheduled for release at 8:00 p.m., and official results are expected no later than Wednesday, according to Xinhua.
The Interior Ministry said the poll opened peacefully, with no reported incidents. By 8 a.m. the ministry had received 415 reports of violations of election law, mainly suspected vote‑buying.
Other enforcement activities included eight criminal proceedings, 1,822 warning notices, 346 specialized police operations, and ten detentions, the ministry said.
The most reports of violations were filed in the regions of Burgas (97), Vratsa (70) and Stara Zagora (44).
In the first round, the Iotova‑Valchev ticket was backed by the ruling Progressive Bulgaria party and the Bulgarian Socialist Party, while the Gurov‑Kandev ticket received support from We Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria.
Iotova, 62, had previously served as Vice President twice, from 2016 to 2021, before succeeding President Rumen Radev after his resignation in January this year.
Gurov has less political experience; he served as caretaker Prime Minister for 78 days earlier this year and has led the parliamentary group for We Continue the Change.
The other members of the tickets, Valchev and Kandev, hold positions in the Bulgarian News Agency and the Ministry of Interior, respectively.
