Bulgaria is electing a president. Clash of pro-Western course with neutrality towards the war in Ukraine

Bulgarians are heading to the polls for presidential elections, with around 6.5 million eligible voters. The elections follow the resignation of Rumen Radev, who served since 2017 and is now running for parliament. His successor, Iliana Yotova, is a frontrunner against independent candidate Andrej Gyurow. The campaign focused on foreign policy regarding the war in Ukraine and economic issues like rising energy prices. The president serves a five-year term with mainly representative functions, and if no candidate receives over 50% of the votes in the first round, a runoff will occur on November 1.