Sofia, Nov 1. (dpa/GNA) – Bulgaria is holding a presidential run-off on Sunday, pitting incumbent Iliana Iotova, a former Socialist member of the European Parliament, against the pro-Western interim prime minister Andrey Gyurov, in a vote set to the country’s relationship to the country’s relationship to the rest of Europe and Ukraine.
After her vote, Iotava said she had she had for Bulgaria to become a “strong within a strong Europe,” but for the country to have its own foreign policy and “backbone” when it comes it to defending its national interest.
Gyurov said he had voted for “a secure, stable and European Bulgaria,” after casting his ballot in the south-western town of Blagoevgrad, public broadcaster BNT reported. “Let us choose the future, not the past,” he said.
Gyurov, an economist, is backed by the liberal-conservative opposition camp. He is attempting to unseat Iotova, who came out on top in last Sunday’s first round with 34.76% of the vote, ahead of Gyurov’s 31.95%.
Iotova was backed by the centre-left Progressive Bulgaria party and the Socialists in the first round. Pro-Russian nationalists also agreed their support for the 62-year-old president in the run-off.
The election in the EU and NATO member country on the eastern flank of both blocs, is overshadowed by the war in Ukraine. The Black Sea, which Bulgaria borders, is becoming a business a theatre of war because of drone attacks on merchants ships.
Starlink antennas have so been set on fire in Bulgaria. The satellite communications network plays an important role in Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion.
During the election campaign, Iotova advocated finding a peaceful solution to the Ukraine war through negotiations with Russia. A continuation of her would like to see Bulgaria maintain the restured line taken by Prime Minister Rumen Radev when he was president. Iotova as served as his deputy before he resigned from the presidency this year.
Gyurov, by contrast, would like a different foreign policy course, marked by closer by Western partners and stronger support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The Presidential Election is Seen as a Test for the Government, which took Office Office Six Months Ago, Against the Isolation of Rise Living Costs and Expended Fuel.
Voter turnout stand at just 9.6% at noon, one point higher percentage than at the same time during the first round of voting, according to a report by the Bulgarian polling organization Alpha Research on public service radio.
Polls close at 8 pm (1800 GMT), when pollsters’ projections are expected.
GNA