Bulgaria’s Presidential Frontrunner Holds Lead Despite Drone Controversy

Bulgaria is heading to presidential elections this Sunday and expectations are that the Ukraine-skeptic acting President Iliana Iotova will win. As former vice president under Prime Minister Rumen Radev when he was president, and supported by Radev’s party Progressive Bulgaria, Iotova’s victory would increase Radev’s grip on power. 

The elections come amid tense moments geopolitically. Bulgaria’s zone in the Black Sea was hit by drone attacks on October 6 and 13, similar to attacks that occurred in Romania’s territorial waters this month. After these events, the government faced criticism for a poor response and the lack of a defence strategy as well for the widespread reluctance among ministers to name Russia as the likely attacker. 

The elections on October 25, happening on the same day as snap elections in neighbouring Serbia, present a contest between two candidates who are running as independents but who are each supported by various political parties.

The Radev-backed acting President Iotova and her designated vice president, the director of the country’s state newswire Bulgarian Telegraph Agency Kiril Valchev, will face off against her main opponent: the reform-minded banker and 2026 interim Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov. Georgi Kandev, former chief secretary general to the Interior Ministry, is Gyurov’s running mate.