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Novinite (24 April 2026)

The Central Election Commission reported that voter turnout in the April 19 parliamentary elections reached 51.11%, with a total of 3,360,330 people casting their ballots. CEC Deputy Chairperson and spokesperson Rositsa Mateva said participation was strongest in Sofia and weakest in Kardzhali, where turnout fell to just 29.53%. The highest activity among electoral districts was recorded in the 23rd Multi-Member Constituency in Sofia, where 59.47% voted.

At municipal level, the most active voters were in Belitsa, where turnout reached 69.57%, while the lowest participation was registered in Ardino with only 26.69%. CEC Chairperson Kamelia Neykova added that more than 190,000 Bulgarians voted abroad, contributing to the final national figure. According to her, the overall conclusion is that “the elections went smoothly,” despite strong voter interest and heavy activity in some polling stations.

Special attention was given to the situation in Sofia’s Studentski Grad district, where long queues formed between 8 and 9 p.m. due to shortages of paper ballots and printer paper for machine voting. Neykova explained that once the Regional Election Commission established the shortage, additional paper ballots were provided. She commented: “There were signals that there was a crowd between 8 and 9 p.m. in a section in Studentski Grad, but I don't know why these voters didn't go to vote in a neighboring section.”

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