Bulgarians choose between Yotova and Gyurov as drone threats loom

Voters in Bulgaria cast their ballots on Sunday in a presidential runoff that pits the acting president against a former caretaker prime minister.

The election comes as drone attacks on Black Sea shipping have killed or left missing several sailors, adding urgency to the campaign.

Acting President Iliana Yotova faces Andrey Gyurov, who served as interim prime minister in early 2026.

Yotova advanced to the final round after winning the first vote on Oct. 25 by 2.8 percentage points.

Election officials reported that only 23% of eligible voters participated in that first round, a record low for the country.

The current contest is the first major test for Prime Minister Rumen Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria party, which has endorsed Yotova.

Radev resigned as head of state earlier this year to lead his party to victory in the general election.

As vice president, Yotova automatically assumed the role of acting president at that time.

She runs as an independent candidate and is expected to maintain Bulgaria’s European path while improving relations with Russia.

Yotova has called for lifting sanctions and a diplomatic solution to end the war in Ukraine.

During a television debate this week, she stated that peace could come only through negotiations.

She also proposed a security meeting involving all six Black Sea countries to sign a moratorium on hostilities. Gyurov is an economist and former deputy governor of the central bank. The pro-Western, reformist opposition backs his candidacy. He signed a security cooperation agreement with Kyiv during his premiership. Gyurov wants Bulgaria to be a reliable NATO ally with strong diplomacy and a firm position. He criticized the government for being reluctant to name Russia as the aggressor in the war. He called for Bulgarian participation in EU decisions from the outset. “When you have no position and are not at the table, you are in fact on the menu,” Gyurov said. Polls opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 8 p.m. First exit poll results are expected after polls close, with official results to be announced Monday.