Iotova Leads Bulgarian Presidential Runoff, Exit Polls Show
According to first exit polls, Iliana Iotova, backed by the EU-skeptical government, prevails over the pro-Western Andrey Gyurov in the runoff.
Bulgarian President Iliana Iotova is set to win the runoff for the presidency, according to first exit polls. She is projected to receive between 50 and 52 percent of the vote, while her pro-Western rival Andrey Gyurov is expected to get 43 to 44 percent. Iotova is considered a critic of military aid to Ukraine, and her success would noticeably change the country's position toward Kyiv.
Gyurov, a former caretaker prime minister, ran as the candidate of the pro-Western forces. Iotova, by contrast, is supported by the coalition led by Prime Minister Rumen Radev, which takes a critical stance toward the European Union. The results come from surveys conducted on election day. They have not yet been confirmed by the official count, so the final number of votes will only be determined with the official result.
After the projections became known, Iotova thanked voters as well as Radev and his party, Progressive Bulgaria. According to the Bulgarian news agency BTA, she said: "Your vote means a lot, because we will hear what they told us." She went on to say: "I would like to thank Progressive Bulgaria from the bottom of my heart. Mr. Radev, without you we would not have made it." Her remarks show how closely Iotova is tied to the governing alliance, whose policies she is likely to support following her election victory.
The runoff is considered significant for the role of the head of state in a country where the government currently shows a comparatively clear distance from military support for Ukraine. The presidency in Bulgaria is primarily representative but has influence on public debate and on foreign policy emphasis. An Iotova victory would therefore strengthen the weight of EU-skeptical forces in the state.
No further details on the final result or reactions from Gyurov's camp are available so far. The source provides no further details on voter turnout or the course of the vote, so the coverage is limited to the available projections and the statements made to date.
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