The Progressive Bulgaria party (PB), led by former President Rumen Radev, emerged as the clear leading force in the Bulgarian parliamentary election. After the counting of approximately 68 percent of the votes, PB secured an undeniable lead with over 44 percent of the vote. For second place, there is a close race between the conservative GERB party, led by former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov (13 percent), and the reformist coalition PP-DB (14 percent). During the election night, Radev stated that he is prepared for coalition formation but also did not rule out the possibility of a single-party government.
Radev, who stepped down from the presidency in January after nine years to run in the election, had backed the anti-corruption protests in Bulgaria in December. He pledged to abolish the “oligarchic government model”. Bulgaria has experienced fragmented parliaments in recent years, with coalitions failing to remain in power for more than a year since 2021. The former president has often been accused of a pro-Russian stance. Among other things, he called for the restoration of relations with Moscow and criticized weapon shipments to Ukraine. He also expressed opposition to the ten-year defense agreement between Bulgaria and Ukraine signed in March.