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BLOOMBERG
Former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov won Bulgaria’s fifth election in two years, but his failure to secure a majority threatens to extend a political stalemate undermining European Union unity over Russia’s war in Ukraine.
A bloc led by Borissov’s Gerb party won 26.5%, according to official results with 93.4% of districts counted on Monday. The bloc led by the arch-rival We Continue the Change party, led by former Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, won 25%. The outcome contradicted earlier exit polls and pre-election surveys that showed Borissov would come in second.
As many as four other parties also made it into parliament. They included a pro-Russian party, Revival, which came in third after suggesting Bulgaria could abandon its membership in the EU and Nato, and organising a referendum to stop its efforts to adopt the euro.
The country of 6.5 million, the EU’s poorest, is looking for a way out of years of political deadlock after a string of inconclusive votes gave no political force enough support to muster a ruling majority. If the deadlock continues, another snap ballot may happen later this year.