Bulgaria elects its first woman president: Iliana Iotova wins runoff with 57.6%

Iliana Iotova has won Bulgaria's presidential runoff and becomes the country's first elected woman head of state, near-final results from the Central Election Commission showed on Monday, Reuters reported via Business Recorder. Turnout was low.

The result

The count stood at 99.95% of precinct protocols processed.

How she got here

The runoff on Sunday followed a first round on 25 October in which no one won an outright majority. Iotova's ticket led then with 34.6%, ahead of Gyurov and Kandev on 32%.

Iotova was vice president until January, when President Rumen Radev resigned to run in the parliamentary election. He won it, on a ticket many analysts consider friendly to the Kremlin, and Iotova became acting president. Radev backed her in this race. Both have called for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine.

Why it matters

Bulgaria is a member of the European Union and NATO and sits on the Black Sea, close to the war in Ukraine. With Iotova and Radev both arguing for talks, Sofia is likely to push that line inside the EU. In Bulgaria's parliamentary system the president's powers are mostly ceremonial, but the office appoints caretaker governments, represents the country abroad and can return laws to parliament.

The Black Sea is a main route for the world's grain and fertiliser, so any move toward ending the war matters to import-dependent countries, Pakistan included. Our euro to rupee page tracks the euro, the currency of the EU's biggest economies and of many of Pakistan's export buyers.