Pro-Russian party of ex-president Rumen Radev wins Bulgaria’s parliamentary election
The party of former Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, Progressive Bulgaria, has won the parliamentary election held on April 19, gaining 44.59% of the vote and securing a majority of 130 seats out of 240 in the National Assembly, public broadcaster BTV reported.
In second place is the GERB party with 13.38% and 39 seats, followed by the We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria coalition with 12.61% and 37 seats. The liberal DPS – Movement for Rights and Freedoms received 7.12% and 21 seats, while the pro-Russian Revival party got 4.25% and 13 seats.
Interior Minister officials received several hundred reports of electoral fraud on election day, including cases of commission members voting on behalf of others.
Radev thanked citizens who supported him and the Interior Ministry for fighting vote-buying.
“We would like to thank the people on the committees and in the agencies who organized these elections, and especially the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which has made great efforts to combat the shameful practice of ‘vote buying’ in Bulgaria,” he wrote.
Elections in Bulgaria
Parliamentary elections were held in Bulgaria on April 19. Among the favorites of the voters is the political force of the former president, who only recently resigned. These are the eighth parliamentary elections in Bulgaria in five years. They are taking place against the backdrop of an "almost chronic" political crisis in the country, which has been going on for five years.
A total of 6,575,151 voters could vote for one of 24 political formations — 14 parties and 10 coalitions. Opinion polls showed that the most popular political formation in the elections is Progressive Bulgaria, led by former President Rumen Radev — who was predicted to receive 32%, which would give the party 90 out of 240 seats in parliament.
More about Rumen Radev
Radev resigned as president in January. Earlier, Bulgaria's government, led by Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov, also resigned amid the largest anti-government protests in the country's history.
During his presidency, Rumen Radev opposed military aid to Ukraine, arguing that such support risked dragging Bulgaria into war. For example, he vetoed the transfer of about 100 armored personnel carriers to Ukraine (a veto later overturned by parliament).
According to the FT, during his presidency, he reluctantly condemned Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, criticized EU sanctions and opposed Bulgaria's entry into the eurozone.
French liberal MEP Valérie Hayer said in an interview with the outlet that she was very concerned about Radev's victory in the elections and called him "Putin's Trojan horse in Europe."
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