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Bulgaria’s 2026 presidential election

This dossier follows Bulgaria’s 2026 presidential election, turnout, the runoff and officially established results.

Last updated : 2 key moments
National Assembly in Sofia in 2018.
Sofia, February 2018. Archive illustration, not the election. Suicasmo, CC BY-SA 4.0. — Suicasmo / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ — Sofia, 24 février 2018, taille réduite.

Where things stand

As of 2 November 2026, Iotova has won the runoff according to near-final counting: 57.58% with 99.95% of precinct protocols processed. These results remain distinct from a final proclamation.

Confirmed

Bulgaria: Iotova wins runoff, near-final results show

Iliana Iotova has won Bulgaria’s presidential runoff of 1 November 2026, according to near-final results released on 2 November. With 99.95% of precinct protocols processed, her ticket with Kiril Valchev received 57.58% of the vote.

National Assembly in Sofia in 2018.
Sofia, February 2018. Archive illustration, not the election. Suicasmo, CC BY-SA 4.0. — Suicasmo / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ — Sofia, 24 février 2018, taille réduite.

Andrey Gyurov and Georgi Kandev took about 39.5%. The “I support no one” option accounted for 2.95%. Reuters and Bulgarian public radio reported these Central Election Commission figures.

A former vice president, Iotova had already been serving as president since Roumen Radev’s departure in January. The result makes her Bulgaria’s first elected female head of state. Counting is almost complete; these figures should be distinguished from a final formal proclamation.

Sources 2
Confirmed

Bulgaria votes in runoff between Iliana Yotova and Andrey Gyurov

Polling stations opened at 7 am local time in Bulgaria on 1 November 2026 for the presidential runoff. Acting President Iliana Yotova faces former interim Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov.

National Assembly building in Sofia in 2018.
Sofia, February 2018. Archive illustration of the capital; not presidential voting. Suicasmo, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized. — Suicasmo / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ — Sofia, 24 février 2018, taille réduite.

Yotova is running with vice-presidential candidate Kiril Valchev against the Gyurov–Georgi Kandev ticket. Voting is normally scheduled to end at 8 pm local time. At publication, voting is still under way and no result identifies a winner.

Turnout is a focus after only about 23% of eligible voters cast ballots in the first round, according to election figures reported by AP and Bulgarian media. Yotova led Gyurov by about 2.8 percentage points. Those figures concern 25 October and do not predict the runoff outcome.

Sources 3