On Sunday, for the first time after the democratic changes in 1989, Bulgaria held presidential and local elections at the same time. With 15 per cent of election protocols processed, the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) has confirmed results announced earlier in the night. Right-wing GERB candidate Rosen Plevneliev wins the first round of the presidential elections with 40.3 per cent of votes. He is followed by Ivaylo Kalfin, candidate of the Socialist Party, who has won 30.1 per cent of votes. The independent candidate Meglena Kuneva has won 13.7 per cent. Volen Siderov, presidential candidate and head of the nationalist ATAKA, comes fourth with 3.7 per cent of votes. On 30 October, after the second round of presidential elections, the name of the new Bulgarian president will become clear. The two rivaling candidates are Rosen Plevneliev and Ivaylo Kalfin. During a press conference that followed the end of the voting, Rosen Plevneliev said he wouldn’t seek any settlements with other parties and would fight for every vote. He added that GERB had emerged as a strong party with a vision and cause for modern Bulgaria. Ivaylo Kalfin said that independence was the basic difference between him and Rosen Plevneliev and this was the key to the future presidential institution. In Kalfin’s words, Bulgaria should not be divided in GERB and all the rest but all interests of Bulgarian citizens had to be guarded.
GERB party has won most of the votes at the local elections – 38 per cent. It is followed by BSP with 24 per cent and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms with 6.7 per cent. According to forecast results, current mayor of Sofia Yordanka Fandakova from GERB has won 52 per cent of votes of the citizens of the capital Sofia. bnr.bg