Bulgaria Elects a President on October 25: Possible Runoff on November 1, and Former Prime Minister Gyurov Is in the Race
Parliament set the first round for October 25 with a possible runoff on November 1; the incumbent’s term ends on January 22, 2027.
Bulgaria’s presidential election is scheduled for October 25, 2026, and if no one wins in the first round, the runoff is on November 1. Parliament set the date with the support of Progressive Bulgaria, the MRF and Vazrazhdane; We Continue the Change abstained, and GERB–UDF and Democratic Bulgaria did not take part in the vote. Democratic Bulgaria said it would not support the proposed date.
The incumbent’s term ends on January 22, 2027. The law requires the election to be held no more than three and no less than two months before the term expires. Among the candidates is former caretaker prime minister Andrey Gyurov, who confirmed his candidacy and is described as the leading PP-DB candidate. A list of all candidates is not in the sources we checked.
For Macedonia, Bulgaria is a neighbor that affects the EU path, but the texts we checked contain no information on the candidates’ positions on Macedonia, so we draw no conclusions. The result is expected after October 25, and the possible runoff is on November 1.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · October 13, 2026
