Bulgarian Exit Polls Raise Fears Of Political Stalemate

SOFIA – In what appears to be the continuation of a long-standing political deadlock, exit polls gave former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov’s center-right GERB party the most votes in Bulgaria’s parliamentary elections but without enough support to form a government by itself.

The influential Alpha Research/BNT exit poll gave GERB 26.4 percent of the vote, followed by the reformist PP (We Continue The Change) at 14.9 percent and the far-right, pro-Russia Revival Party at 12.9 percent, amid low turnout. An exit poll conducted for bTV by Market Links had similar results, albeit with a slightly higher figure for GERB. Other parties appeared to score enough to reach the 4 percent minimum requirement to gain seats in parliament, with two other groupings near that level.

Borisov’s pro-Western GERB party is not expected to win enough seats for a parliamentary majority and will need to form a coalition. GERB announced that Borisov would be their candidate for prime minister if it secures at least 80 out of 240 seats in parliament. PP (We Continue The Change) has said it would not support Borisov for the position and have demanded an independent prime minister with strong anti-corruption credentials.