Bulgaria Set to Elect Yotova in Presidential Runoff as Rival Concedes
Parallel counts put acting President Iliana Yotova at 56.6 to 58.2 percent of the vote, with official results expected Monday.
Bulgaria's acting President Iliana Yotova was headed for a decisive victory in Sunday's presidential runoff, with parallel counts by five major polling agencies putting her at 56.6 to 58.2 percent of the vote and her challenger conceding within hours of polls closing.
"We accept the results, no matter how surprising they are," Andrey Gyurov, a former interim prime minister and central bank deputy governor backed by pro-Western opposition parties, told a press conference in Sofia.
Yotova, a longtime figure in the Bulgarian Socialist Party, became acting president in January after President Rumen Radev resigned to run in April's parliamentary elections, which his Progressive Bulgaria party won outright. Progressive Bulgaria backed her bid for a full five-year term.
In last weekend's first round, Yotova led with 34.76 percent against Gyurov's 31.95 percent. Her campaign opposed additional military aid to Ukraine and called for a diplomatic end to the war, while Gyurov warned her victory would leave no counterweight at the top of the state.
Turnout was low at roughly 27 to 29 percent. Official results are expected Monday. If confirmed, Yotova would become Bulgaria's first elected female head of state.
(Featured image: Acting President Iliana Yotova. Photo: Bulgarian Presidency, CC BY 2.5.)