Bulgaria Reports Low Turnout and Technical Failures in Elections
Bulgaria held presidential and vice-presidential elections on October 25 with a low voter turnout of 5.8 percent and reports of voting machine failures.
The Central Election Commission reported a low voter turnout of 5.8 percent during Bulgaria's presidential and vice-presidential elections on October 25, 2026. As of 12:00, 385,092 voters had cast ballots, with participation peaking at 8.12 percent in Vidin District and falling to 2.56 percent in Kardzhali District.
Technical failures affected 20 voting machines across several districts, including Sofia-city 23, Burgas, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pleven, Ruse, and Silistra. These malfunctions forced some polling stations to switch to paper ballots. Regarding technical errors, spokesperson Stoyanka Balova-Tsvetkova explained that if an incomplete receipt is generated, the vote is still counted in the flash memory and visualized in the final report.
The Central Election Commission received 13 reports of violations involving sociological surveys, election campaigning, and voter lists. To address potential irregularities, the Ministry of Interior established a 24/7 hotline and email for citizens to report electoral crimes through October 26.
