Balgarianovinite.com An analysis of party advertisements during the campaign for the April 19 elections shows the formations running for Parliament spent over EUR 913,000 (excluding VAT) on ads, most of these resources (42.52%) going into online media ads. The parties’ ad expenses were concentrated in a limited number of media, mostly TV channels, according to the analysis published by the Institute for Public Environment Development on Saturday.
The analysis is based on data from the official websites of 38 national and regional media (8 TV channels, 3 radio stations, 11 newspapers, and 16 information sites and agencies).
The formation that spent the most on ads was Progressive Bulgaria (EUR 196,219.42). The remaining top ten spenders were Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (EUR 172,157.23), Vazrazhdane (EUR 163,691.13), GERB-UDF (EUR 61,712.27), BSP – United Left (EUR 55,834.64), MRF (EUR 32,121.63), Velichie (EUR 29,479), and Siyanie (EUR 25,147), Blue Bulgaria (EUR 20,861.43), and the Anti-Corruption Block (EUR 19,074.84).
By media, the biggest share of ad expenses went to online media (42.52%), followed by other TV channels (35.15%), Bulgarian National Television (7.87%), other radio service providers (6.9%), print media (6.44%), and Bulgarian National Radio (1.12%).
The data reveal persisting issues in election campaign advertising, the Institute said. Among the problems are: lack of label for paid content; failure to publish contracts; publication of agreements with political parties, but in a format that does not make it clear what services they cover; difficulty in tracking contracts for media packages and channelling these funds to legal entities affiliated with the parties.
The data also point to varying approaches in political formations’ communication with voters. Traditional media, especially television, remain important, but are used according to party strategies and the current context. Major parties seek national reach and support. Some of them diversify the types of media they invest in during the campaign (television, radio, online, print), while others direct the bulk of their funds primarily toward the three major TV channels in the country (Bulgarian National Television, bTV, and Nova TV). Smaller parties, on the other hand, most often use media packages, with oversight of how these funds are spent often remaining minimal. For some participants, media packages are the primary or sole resource in the campaign.
In recent years, there has been a growing preference for online platforms and social media, which offer more affordable prices, longer-form engagement, a lack of moderation, and much easier audience targeting. In the current campaign, however, there has been a slight shift away from this trend due to the ban on political advertising on Meta, but the full picture will become clear after the parties’ final financial reports are published, the Institute said. Parties Spent over EUR 913,000 on Election Campaign Ads, Most in Small Number of Media – Analysis 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-05-02 11:20:13 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law