Bulgarians Vote in Presidential Run-Off as Black Sea Ship Attacks Weigh on Campaign

Bulgarians began voting on November 1, 2026 in a presidential run-off between Iliana Iotova and Andrey Gyurov, a contest that has been shaped in part by a series of attacks on ships in the Black Sea. Polls close at 8pm local time (18:00 GMT), and exit polls are to be published after voting ends. A result is expected on Monday, according to Al Jazeera.

A run-off is a second vote held between the two leading candidates when neither wins a majority in the first round. Iotova, 61, came first in that round but did not reach the 50 percent needed to win outright. Reuters reported her first-round share as 34.6 percent, with Gyurov on 32 percent. Turnout was very low: election officials said only 23 percent of eligible voters cast a ballot, a record low for a first round.

The two candidates have different profiles. Iotova became acting president in January, after Rumen Radev resigned to enter a parliamentary race. A victory would make her Bulgaria's first elected female president. Radev, now prime minister, backs her candidacy.

Gyurov, 50, is a former caretaker prime minister, meaning he led a temporary government. He is supported by pro-Western, reformist parties, and while he was prime minister he signed a security cooperation agreement with Kyiv. Former prime minister Boiko Borisov has also expressed support for him.

The security concern behind the campaign is the string of drone attacks on merchant ships off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast in the month before the vote. A Greek container ship sank after being hit by sea drones on the Wednesday before the election, and about two dozen seafarers are feared dead. Bulgaria's government has asked allies for help in bolstering maritime security.

Both candidates condemned the attacks and called for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine. Radev said the outcome of the ship strikes "benefits the Russian Federation."

Reports from NBC News and US News describe the run-off as taking place amid economic hardship and regional security threats. Before the first round, an Alpha Research poll had given Iotova 41 percent and Gyurov 28 percent, a gap that did not carry through to the first-round count.