Bulgaria heads to presidential runoff after close vote

Bulgaria will head to a runoff vote on November 1 after a ‌tight race between the two leading presidential candidates failed to produce an outright winner in Sunday's elections, which garnered record-low participation, official results showed. With 95% of the votes counted, incumbent Iliana Iotova, 61, attracted 34.6% against 32% for ex-caretaker prime minister ‌Andrey Gyurov, 50, falling short of the 50% threshold for the largely ceremonial role in a race of ‌27 candidates.

Sunday's vote took on added significance after a series of drone attacks on merchant ships off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast that likely killed some two dozen international seafarers. However, only about 22% of the eligible voters showed up to cast their ballot, according to polling ⁠agencies. The ​strikes, which sparked international condemnation ⁠and concerns about the growing reach of the war in Ukraine, prompted the government to seek allied assistance to bolster maritime security.

BOTH CANDIDATES CONDEMN ⁠DRONE STRIKES Bulgaria has stopped short of directly accusing Russia of carrying out the attacks, but Prime Minister Rumen Radev said their outcome "benefits ​the Russian Federation".

Both leading presidential candidates condemned the strikes, but they differ over the broader war. Iotova, formerly ⁠vice president, became acting president in January after Radev resigned to enter the parliamentary race, which he won on what many political analysts ⁠considered ​a Kremlin-friendly ticket. Radev supports Iotova and they have both called for a diplomatic end to the war.

A victory for Iotova would make her Bulgaria's first elected female president. "I want to share a certain worry and tell ⁠Bulgarians that it is an illusion if they think we can change something in this country without (them) voting," Iotova ⁠said after polls closed at ⁠8 p.m.

Gyurov, who served as caretaker prime minister this year, is supported by pro-Western, reformist parties and has long expressed support for Ukraine. He signed a security cooperation agreement with ‌Kyiv during his ‌time as premier.