Bulgaria: The presidential elections move to the second round The voting in the presidential elections has ended in Bulgaria. None of the pairs of candidates received a majority, so a second round will take place on November 1. First results according to the Central Election Commission on the morning of October 26, after processing 17.86% of the protocols: Iliana Yutova and Kirill Vilchev - 35.53%; Andrey Girov and Georgy Kandev - 30.51%; Kostadin Kostadinov and Peter Volgin - 13.53%. This is preliminary data and may change as the remaining protocols are processed. Low turnout According to the CEC, by 4:00 p.m. 15.95% of registered voters had arrived at the polling stations. After the polls closed, the polling agencies estimated that the final turnout was about 22%. Low activity has become one of the characteristics of voting. What is behind the conflict? Yotova advocates a diplomatic settlement of the war in Ukraine and the development of a dialogue with Moscow. Girov adheres to a pro-European course and supports closer cooperation with Ukraine and Western partners. Bulgaria is a member of the European Union and NATO, so the foreign policy directives of the future president are important for discussions on Black Sea security and relations with Russia. What will the second round decide? On November 1, voters will choose between two couples. The result depends not only on the supporters of Yotova and Giorov, but also on which part of the voters who supported the other candidates will make it to the repeat vote and who they will prefer. The President of Bulgaria is elected for five years. He represents the country in foreign relations, he is the commander-in-chief and has the right to veto laws, but the main executive power belongs to the government.

Bulgaria: The presidential elections move to the second round The voting in the presidential elections has ended in Bulgaria. None of the pairs of candidates received a majority, so a second round will take place on November 1. First results according to the Central Election Commission on the morning of October 26, after processing 17.86% of the protocols: Iliana Yutova and Kirill Vilchev - 35.53%; Andrey Girov and Georgy Kandev - 30.51%; Kostadin Kostadinov and Peter Volgin - 13.53%. This is preliminary data and may change as the remaining protocols are processed. Low turnout According to the CEC, by 4:00 p.m. 15.95% of registered voters had arrived at the polling stations. After the polls closed, the polling agencies estimated that the final turnout was about 22%. Low activity has become one of the characteristics of voting. What is behind the conflict? Yotova advocates a diplomatic settlement of the war in Ukraine and the development of a dialogue with Moscow. Girov adheres to a pro-European course and supports closer cooperation with Ukraine and Western partners. Bulgaria is a member of the European Union and NATO, so the foreign policy directives of the future president are important for discussions on Black Sea security and relations with Russia. What will the second round decide? On November 1, voters will choose between two couples. The result depends not only on the supporters of Yotova and Giorov, but also on which part of the voters who supported the other candidates will make it to the repeat vote and who they will prefer. The President of Bulgaria is elected for five years. He represents the country in foreign relations, he is the commander-in-chief and has the right to veto laws, but the main executive power belongs to the government.