Bulgaria: after the legislative elections, a fragmented Parliament and the threat of political impasse

A Bulgarian voter votes for the early elections in an office in Sofia, October 2, 2022. AFP - NIKOLAY DOYCHINOV

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1 min

Early legislative elections were held on Sunday October 2 in Bulgaria, but the results are not at all convincing.

The country is in the depths of a political crisis after a no-confidence motion forced the government to resign in June.

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With our correspondent in Sofia

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Seven or even eight parties could win seats according to the first results of the October 2 poll.

It is an extremely fragmented Parliament, with a participation rate which is in free fall.

Only 35% of Bulgarians turned out to vote according to the preliminary results.

The parties seem very intransigent towards their potential partners.

The new groups, wanting to be carriers of political change and the fight against corruption, do not want to associate themselves with their predecessors, such as the Gerb party of former Prime Minister Boïko Borissov.

Who, despite everything, won these legislative elections with 23.5% of the vote, followed by "We continue the change" by former Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who obtained 19.5%.

The nationalists of the Renaissance party also doubled their result compared to the legislative elections of November 2021, with 10% of the vote.

For the experts in any case, the most likely scenario is a political stalemate which would lead to early legislative elections in the spring of 2023. These would be the fifth legislative elections in less than two years.

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• Bulgaria