Bulgaria Votes in Eighth Election Amid Political Crisis

Bulgaria is conducting its eighth election in five years on a Sunday, with President Rumen Radev's group, Progress Bulgaria, expected to secure approximately 35% of the vote according to opinion polls. Radev, a former Air Force general, has pledged to fight corruption and criticized the European Union's green energy policies as naive.

The political crisis began in 2021 when large anti-corruption protests led to the downfall of the long-time conservative government led by Boyko Borissov. Radev, who has been in office for nine years, aims to eliminate the oligarchic governance model in Bulgaria.

The GERB party, led by Borissov, is projected to receive around 20% of the vote. Radev has vowed to avoid coalition governance with GERB and aims for an absolute majority in the 240-seat parliament.

High voter turnout is expected, especially after recent police actions against vote-buying, which included the detention of hundreds of individuals.