Iliana Yotova won Bulgaria’s presidential runoff on Sunday, becoming the country’s first elected female president with between 57.4% and 58.2% of the vote, according to parallel counts by multiple polling agencies .
The acting president defeated Andrey Gyurov, a banker and former caretaker prime minister, who secured between 38.6% and 39.6% of the vote. Turnout was historically low, estimated at 27.2% to 29.1%, raising questions about the mandate’s weight despite its legal validity .
Yotova, an ally of Prime Minister Rumen Radev, favors dialogue with Moscow and opposes military aid to Ukraine, a stance that aligns with her longstanding position on the war. She took over as president in January after Radev stepped down to run in parliamentary elections .
Gyurov, backed by pro-Western opposition groups, had criticized Yotova for not explicitly blaming Russia for recent drone attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea. Yotova countered that peace in Ukraine could only be achieved through negotiations .
Radev, who endorsed Yotova, called her a “worthy president” after the vote. Supporters framed her victory as a step toward stability, though the low turnout underscored public alienation from the political system .
Yotova, 62, was previously vice-president alongside Radev in 2016 and 2021. She ran as an independent but had the support of the ruling Progressive Bulgaria party and the Bulgarian Socialist Party, where she began her political career .
