In the October 25 vote in Bulgaria’s 2026 presidential elections, incumbent head of state Iliana Yotova got 35.3 per cent of the vote, with Andrei Gyurov in second place at 32.4 per cent, according to an exit poll by the Alpha Research agency, the results of which were released as the election day ended.

Voter turnout was estimated by Alpha Research at 22.3 per cent at 7pm, when polls closing was one hour away.

In third place was the pro-Russian ticket of Vuzrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov and MEP Petar Volgin, with 12.6 per cent. None of the remaining 24 tickets got a percentage in double figures, according to Alpha Research.

The Market Links agency’s exit poll put Yotova at 32.2 per cent and Gyurov at 31.6 per cent, with Kostadinov at 13.5 per cent. Again, no other candidate was in double figures, according to Market Links.

For a presidential candidate to win at the first round, voter turnout must be no less than 50 per cent and that candidate must win more than 50 per cent of valid votes.

If, as the exit poll suggests, these criteria have not been met, the elections must proceed to a second round between the two tickets with the largest shares of votes, with November 1 set aside for this, according to a vote by Parliament.

Yotova, who became president in January 2026 after Roumen Radev quit the post to enter parliamentary politics, is seeking election as president in her own right, and has the stated backing of Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria party, the Bulgarian Socialist Party and left-wing ABV.

She was nominated by an initiative committee, with state news agency BTA head Kiril Vulchev as her running mate.

Gyurov, who earlier in 2026 served as caretaker prime minister, also is the nominee of an initiative committee and has the endorsement of pro-Western political groups We Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria, opposition in Parliament to Prime Minister Radev’s ruling party. His running mate is former acting Interior Ministry chief secretary Georgi Kandev.

The official campaign period in Bulgaria’s regular presidential elections began on September 25 and continued until October 23, a period in which headlines were dominated by attacks on merchant ships in the Black Sea off the coasts of Bulgaria and Romania. These attacks are widely believed to be the work of Russia, but Radev and Yotova have declined to apportion blame, claiming that there is no evidence.

Bulgaria’s 2026 presidential elections: The Sofia Globe’s factfile

Bulgaria’s 2026 presidential elections: Yotova 35.3%, Gyurov 32.4% – exit poll 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-25 18:09:21

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