In his campaign, Rumen Radev talked about improving relations with Moscow and resuming the free flow of Russian oil and gas into Europe
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenReutersPublished: 5:41pm, 19 Apr 2026Updated: 5:12am, 20 Apr 2026Pro-Russian former president Rumen Radev is set for a runaway victory in Bulgaria’s election and may even secure a parliamentary majority, exit polls showed, potentially ending years of weak coalition governments and altering the European Union member’s foreign policy.
An updated exit poll conducted by Sofia-based Alpha Research showed Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria with 44 per cent, far ahead of the long-dominant GERB party, led by former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, at 12.5 per cent.
If confirmed, the performance, which outstripped opinion polls, would mark one of the strongest results by a single party in a generation, sideline a party that has ruled on and off for decades and may see an end to the instability that has resulted in eight elections in five years.
“Progressive Bulgaria won decisively. This is a victory of hope over distrust, a victory of freedom over fear and, finally, if you will, a victory of morality,” Radev said of the exit poll results during a press conference.
Radev, a Eurosceptic and former fighter pilot who opposes military support for Ukraine’s war effort against Moscow, stepped down from the presidency in January to run in the parliamentary election, which comes after mass protests forced out the previous government in December.
He rode a wave of frustration with political instability in the Balkan country of 6.5 million people, where voters are sick of corruption and veteran parties that have dominated politics for decades. Alpha Research put turnout at 47 per cent with one hour of voting to go, up from the 39 per cent total in the last election in October 2024.
“There is now an opportunity for the things people have been hoping to see change to actually become visible,” Evelina Koleva, a manager at digital marketing company in Sofia, told Reuters.
