In Bulgaria, the fifth parliamentary elections in two years have started. There is no clear favourite. The approximately six million voters have to go to the polls again because all attempts to form a new government failed after early parliamentary elections in October 2022.
Opinion pollsters assume a neck-and-neck race between the two pro-Western camps. The liberal-conservative bloc PP-DB led by ex-Prime Minister Kiril Petkov and the centre-right alliance GERB-SDS led by Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, who will rule three times until 2021, will be present. According to surveys, each camp is likely to get about 26 percent of the vote.
The ideal government can only exist with the support of 130 to 140 parliamentarians, which can only be achieved with the top two parties, Borisov said in an interview with the TV channel bTV on Friday. However, Petkov’s PP-DB bloc ruled out a coalition with the GERB if Borissov remained party leader. He is accused of corrupt administration.
Mutual allegations of corruption
The election campaign was shaped by concerns about rising inflation and mutual allegations of corruption by the parties. Bulgaria’s support for Ukraine in the Russian offensive war also caused controversy. At the end of 2022, the parliament of the NATO state approved the first military aid package for Kiev. But head of state Rumen Radev declared that Bulgaria would not supply arms to Ukraine as long as the interim cabinet he had appointed was in power.
Participation from voters who are tired of voting is likely to be low. Polling places close at 8pm local time (7pm CEST). No reliable figures are expected at night. The official final result must be known within four days.
Source: Krone
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