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Bulgaria's pro-Russian former president takes strong lead in election, exit polls show
The coalition led by ex-president Rumen Radev could fall short of a majority, leaving him to seek partners in a fragmented parliament, pollsters said.
- On Sunday, April 19, 2026, an exit poll showed the Progressive Bulgaria coalition, led by former President Rumen Radev, winning 39.2% of the vote, ahead of the center-right GERB party led by Boyko Borissov, which captured 15.1%.
- Bulgaria's eighth parliamentary election in five years, this snap vote follows the resignation of a conservative-led government amid December's nationwide protests that drew hundreds of thousands of mainly young people.
- Radev, a 62-year-old former fighter pilot, resigned from the presidency in January to pursue the premiership, campaigning to "remove the corrupt, oligarchic model of governance from political power."
- Despite the lead, Radev faces an uphill task forming a government, as the coalition lacks a parliamentary majority while Trend research group exit polling indicates six parties may pass the 4% threshold.
- Radev's supporters remain divided between those seeking anti-corruption reforms and those backing his pro-Russian views, complicating Bulgaria's foreign policy alignment within Europe as the new government takes shape.
168 Articles
168 Articles
According to partial results, Progressive Bulgaria has more than 44 percent of the vote; the opposition is fragmented, with several parties remaining below the parliamentary threshold.
The exit polls clearly lead the president who resigned at the beginning of the year, critic of Zelensky and supporter of the need to deal with Moscow.The former President Rumen Radev returns to the lead of Bulgaria. Gerb's Conservatives collapsed in the Gerb-Sdf coalition that result in second place, the third force would be the liberal party We continue the change (Pp) while the socialists with the Bsp party, despite the forecasts, would have m…
Its pro-Russian but anti-corruption formula has greatly seduced the electorate of the poorest country in the European Union. ...
Rumen Radev, a former Bulgarian president critical of the EU and a proponent of improving ties with Russia, has won the Bulgarian election. “Progressive Bulgaria (PB) has won clearly – the victory of hope over distrust, the victory of freedom over fear,” Radev told reporters outside his office in Sofia. Pollsters predict that the Progressive Bulgaria (PB) party will win 44 percent of the vote, giving it an absolute majority of at least 129 seats…
It is very close to self-reliance - This election was the eighth in five years - Radev has served as president of Bulgaria
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Bias Distribution
- 37% of the sources lean Left
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