Bulgaria votes in presidential runoff split over Russia

Bulgarians voted on Sunday in a presidential runoff between the incumbent, Iliana Iotova, and pro-Western challenger Andrey Gyurov, a contest that will signal how the EU and NATO member intends to deal with Moscow and the war in Ukraine.

Iotova took about 35% in the first round, finishing 43,000 votes ahead of Gyurov, according to Euronews. The result confounded earlier opinion polls that had pointed to a more comfortable win for her.

Polling stations opened at 7am local time and were due to close at 8pm.

The runoff sets Iotova, backed by the ruling Progressive Bulgaria party, the Bulgarian Socialist Party and the nationalist VMRO, against Gyurov, who is supported by the opposition Democratic Bulgaria and We Continue the Change.

Iotova has pushed for dialogue with Moscow and opposes continued military aid to Ukraine. In a televised debate on Thursday she said peace "can only be achieved through negotiations", adding that more money and more sophisticated weapons for Kyiv "will only lead to further destruction and many deaths on both sides".

Gyurov argued that Russia "must put an end to its aggression so that the next steps can be taken", and said: "Let us name the country from which the threats originate."

Bulgaria has historically maintained close ties with Russia, and the country is deeply divided over how that relationship should now develop, Euronews reported.

The vote follows a series of attacks on vessels in the Black Sea off the Bulgarian coast. Prime Minister Rumen Radev has said a ceasefire in Ukraine and peace talks are the only guarantee that the Black Sea will again be a safe route for commercial shipping. Radev said the attacks appeared to serve Russian interests and summoned the Russian ambassador, though the government says there is no evidence so far directly linking them to Moscow.

Political analyst Teodor Slavev told the AFP news agency, in comments reported by Euronews, that voters would use the election to deliver a verdict on "Iotova's unconvincing response regarding Russian threats in the Black Sea".