Bulgaria Faces Nov. 1 Presidential Runoff Amid Low Turnout

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 last Sunday’s election, which drew record-low turnout, official results showed. The incumbent, Iliana Iotova, garnered 34.76% of the first-round vote against 31.95% for former caretaker prime minister Andrey Gyurov in a race of 27 candidates for the largely ceremonial role. Neither secured the majority required to win outright. A first-round victory also requires turnout of more than half of eligible voters. JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. With turnout at just 22.98% of eligible voters, the gap between the two frontrunners was fewer than 43,000 votes. Last week’s election took on added significance after a series of drone attacks on merchant ships off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast left some two dozen international seafarers feared dead. 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. On Wednesday, a container ship whose cargo included hazardous goods was struck by drones about 21 nautical miles southeast of Bulgaria’s coastal town of Shabla. The ship subsequently sank, but all 18 crew members were rescued. 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.” Moscow has denied involvement. Other Topics of Interest Lavrov Protests Poland’s G20 Role as US Backs Full Membership Sergey Lavrov has condemned Poland’s inclusion at the G20 summit in Atlanta, as Marco Rubio championed Warsaw’s bid for full permanent membership. Moscow or Brussels? Both leading presidential candidates have condemned the strikes, but they differ over the broader war. Iotova, formerly vice president, became president in January after Radev resigned to enter the parliamentary race, which his party 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. Gyurov, who served as caretaker prime minister this year, is supported by pro-Western, reformist parties and has expressed support for Ukraine. He signed a 10-year cooperation agreement with Kyiv during his time as premier. Sunday’s runoff pits Iotova, who favors improved relations with Russia and is backed by Radev, against Gyurov, who is supported by pro-EU opposition parties. TVP World is Poland's first English-language channel where you can find our guest interviews, world news from the Polish perspective and the latest news from the CEE region.