Bulgaria's two presidential finalists are set to meet in their first televised debate on October 29, three days before the November 1 runoff. Meanwhile, the Central Election Commission (CEC) is weighing dozens of complaints about the prime minister's public endorsement of the incumbent.
President Iliana Iotova and challenger Andrey Gyurov will debate on the public broadcaster BNT, Svobodna Tochka reported, citing the newspaper Dnevnik and both campaigns. Iotova became president in January 2026 after the Constitutional Court ended Rumen Radev's term following his resignation, the state news agency BTA reported. Radev is now prime minister.
The first-round result
| Candidate | Share of the vote |
|---|---|
| Iliana Iotova (running mate Kiril Valchev) | 34.76% |
| Andrey Gyurov (running mate Georgi Kandev) | 31.95% |
| Kostadin Kostadinov, Revival | 12.54% |
The CEC's official results put the gap between the top two at 42,719 votes. Turnout was 22.98%, according to Svobodna Tochka's summary of the commission's figures. BTA reported that 1,525,034 people voted in the first round.
The complaint over the prime minister's endorsement
On October 26, Radev issued a statement urging voters to back Iotova. The government's information service then shared it on its official website and Facebook page. Gyurov's campaign committee filed a complaint with the CEC that day, BNT reported. The complaint quotes Radev as saying, "Let us vote for Iliana Iotova." It argues that using government channels broke two rules in the Electoral Code. One bans campaigning through state institutions. The other bans the free use of public administrative resources for a campaign. "The posts must be taken down immediately and those responsible must be punished," Gyurov said.
The government's information service replied that the runoff campaign had not yet legally begun when the statement was released. It cited the article of the Electoral Code that sets when the CEC names the two finalists, BurgasMedia reported. It also said it had a duty to report the prime minister's positions accurately and in full. Iotova's committee said Radev had announced his support for her about two months earlier, so it saw no problem in him repeating it.
By October 27, the CEC had received 72 complaints about the statement. It had not yet examined them in detail or ruled, BurgasMedia reported.
What the candidates and parties are saying
Gyurov and his backers. On election night, Gyurov said Bulgaria needed "an active president" who could explain decisions and unite citizens. He said he would seek support "solely from the citizens" rather than from party leaders, Novinite reported. Democratic Bulgaria and We Continue the Change have urged voters to back him. Radan Kanev of the Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria said Gyurov would provide a counterweight to executive power. Rumen Hristov, a GERB-SDS member of parliament, also urged his party's voters to back Gyurov. GERB leader Boyko Borisov has said he does not offer support that was not requested, Svobodna Tochka reported.
Iotova and her backers. Iotova did not ask parties for endorsements, saying her message was for all citizens, according to Novinite. She made peace central to her platform, saying security and prosperity are impossible without it while war continues in Europe. She also said Bulgaria should not again be governed by "haphazard coalitions." The Bulgarian Socialist Party signaled its support. Revival's Kostadinov has not formally endorsed anyone. But he said "not one" Revival supporter would vote for Gyurov, Svobodna Tochka reported.
Weighing the claims
The core dispute over Radev's statement is legal, and the CEC has not decided it. Both sides cite the Electoral Code. Gyurov's committee points to the ban on using state institutions and resources. The government points to the rule on when a runoff campaign formally starts. A ruling on timing would not, by itself, answer whether government channels may carry a party endorsement.
Some campaign language goes beyond what can be shown. Gyurov's committee said the cabinet had become "Iliana Iotova's press office," a characterization rather than a finding. The government service, for its part, said some media "manipulate" the prime minister's words, without naming examples in its statement as reported. For our approach to sourcing, see the 567politics methodology.
This AI-assisted report was prepared on October 28, 2026, from the sources linked above. Quotations from Bulgarian are translations by the outlets cited or, for Svobodna Tochka, by 567politics.
Photo and reporting note
File image for institutional context, not a photograph of the events reported here. Photo: Hakuna.Matata, original file, CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped for publication. The adapted photo remains available under the same license.
