Bulgarians head for polls in vote for president

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia

Bulgarian voters headed to the polls Sunday to elect a new president and cast ballots in a referendum on changes to the electoral system and political party funding.

Nearly 7 million registered voters can determine the country’s new president for the next five years in a poll that could see the former Soviet satellite draw closer to Russia.

According to polls, Tsetska Tsacheva from the ruling center-right GERB party is likely to narrowly win the election but could lose a Nov. 13 run off to Socialist candidate Rumen Radev, who favors closer ties with Moscow.

If that happens, the Socialists and other opposition parties could try to force an early general election.

Radev has pledged to foster better relations with Russia and remove EU sanctions imposed over Russia’s role in the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine.

A referendum on party funding, the method of electing lawmakers and mandatory voting is also being held.

Nearly 9,000 Bulgarian citizens living in Turkey will be able to vote in diplomatic missions and polling stations at 35 election centers.

Radev, 53, a former air force commander, is backed by the Bulgarian Socialist Party while Parliamentary Speaker Tsetska Tsacheva, 58-year-old lawyer, is a member of Prime Minister Boiko Borisov’s GERB.

Third place is expected to be taken by Krasimir Karakachanov, 51, who is backed by three nationalist coalitions.

Bulgaria is a member of both NATO and the EU but many still view ties with Russia, Bulgaria’s traditional ally, favorably.