Parliamentary elections were held in Bulgaria on 19 April 2026 to elect 240 members of the National Assembly. The vote was triggered by the resignation of the Zhelyazkov government on 11 December 2025 following widespread anti-corruption protests. It marked the country's seventh snap election since April 2021, the result of a five-year political crisis in Bulgaria. Key campaign issues included political corruption, the cost of living, foreign electoral interference, and allegations of vote buying.

The political scene was shifted significantly by the January 2026 resignation of President Rumen Radev, who entered parliamentary politics by forming the centre-left populist Progressive Bulgaria (PB) coalition. Radev campaigned on a platform to dismantle the oligarchic system. The pro-European conservative GERB–SDS and the liberal We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (PP–DB) entered the race as the largest established blocs.

In an election that saw an increase in voter turnout at 51%, PB obtained a landslide victory with 44% of the vote. This resulted in an absolute majority of seats, which observers suggested could resolve the prolonged political crisis. Most other parties lost seats, and nearly 20% of the total vote went to parties that failed to meet the 4% electoral threshold. While PP–DB gained one seat, GERB–SDS lost half of its support and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) recorded its weakest result since 1994. Moreover, the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP)-led BSP – United Left (BSP–OL) alliance finished short of the threshold, leaving it with no seats in the National Assembly for the first time since its foundation in 1991. As a result, the BSP, successor of the Bulgarian Communist Party (BKP), will not be represented in the National Assembly for the first time since the end of Communism in Bulgaria. Every far-right party except Revival (which lost 60% of its seats) also fell out of the Assembly.

Analysts characterized the result as a win for Eurosceptic and pro-Russian sentiment, citing Radev's previous criticism of the European Union (EU) and his willingness to pursue relations with Russia. These positions drew comparisons to the governments of Viktor Orbán in Hungary and Robert Fico in Slovakia, although such characterizations remained a subject of debate. Following his victory, Radev received congratulations from both EU and Russian leadership, and maintained that his administration would pursue a pragmatic foreign policy.

Background

After seven snap elections, the National Assembly failed to form a long-term government as anti-corruption parties made a breakthrough in the April 2021 elections, which started the political crisis, which was further complicated by the entrance of far-right parties. The October 2024 Bulgarian parliamentary election produced a minority government headed by Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov (a member of GERB), comprising GERB–SDS, BSP–OL, and There is Such a People (ITN), with Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (APS), which split from DPS as a result of a rift between two of the party's factions, supporting the government in confidence votes; however, as a result of a ruling by the Constitutional Court of Bulgaria in March 2025, the far-right Velichie entered the National Assembly, bringing down the coalition to exactly the minimum 121 seats compared to the 119 seats held by the opposition.

Following DPS – New Beginning (DPS–NN) leader Delyan Peevski's commitment to support the government if the recalculation resulted in the loss of the government's majority, Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (APS) withdrew from the government in April 2025 because they refused to support a government with Peevski. Days later, the government survived a no-confidence vote due to Peevski's support, effectively creating a de facto confidence and supply agreement. Since taking office in January 2025, the Zhelyazkov government survived several no-confidence votes, bringing the total to five by September 2025. In December 2025, the Zhelyazkov government resigned after weeks of protests over the 2026 budget and corruption within the government. The Zhelyazkov government's primary commitment had been the country's entry into the eurozone in 2026, which it achieved in 2025 when Bulgaria had its final hurdles cleared and adopted the legal framework to make the entry possible.

As President, Radev took a critical stance on adopting the eurozone and attempted to delay it by calling a referendum, a move described as illegal because the Constitutional Court had already clarified in 2024 that Bulgaria was obliged to adopt the euro by its European treaties that were ratified when it joined the EU. Radev's attempt was rejected by Nataliya Kiselova (the BSP–OL-supported Speaker of the National Assembly of Bulgaria), and the decision was upheld by the Constitutional Court, which Radev sharply criticised. After it was confirmed there would be new elections in 2026, the eighth election of the political crisis, Radev resigned as President to contest the elections, seeking to become Prime Minister and describing his political project as a "powerful political alternative" to return Bulgarians' trust in their state, with "clear rules for everyone".

On 18 February 2026, President Iliana Iotova appointed a caretaker government led by Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov, a former member of We Continue the Change (PP) who left PP and the parliament in 2023, and set a parliamentary election to be held on 19 April 2026. Gyurov's government had asked the EU for help to fight off interference from Russia ahead of the election, warning foreign actors were trying to manipulate public opinion through social media networks and propaganda websites. Radev responded by saying his party's likely success in the elections could trigger the "Romanian model", which would lead to annulled elections, such as in the 2024 Romanian presidential election, where a far-right candidate's first place finish in the first round was annulled by courts citing "foreign interference".

Electoral system The 240 members of the National Assembly were elected by an open list and proportional representation system from 31 multi-member constituencies ranging in size from four to nineteen seats. The electoral threshold was 4% for all political parties or electoral coalitions, with seats allocated according to the largest remainder method using a Hare quota.

Political parties Parliamentary parties There were nine political party groups represented in the 51st National Assembly.

Name Ideology Position Leader(s) 2024 result Seats GERB–SDS GERB–SDS Conservatism Boyko Borisov 25.52% PP–DB We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria Liberalism Centre tocentre-right Assen VassilevIvaylo MirchevBozhidar BozhanovAtanas Atanasov 13.75% Revival Revival Ultranationalism Far-right Kostadin Kostadinov 12.92% DPS Movement for Rights and Freedoms Minority interests (Turks) Centre Delyan Peevski 11.13% BSP–OL BSP – United Left Social democracy Centre-left Krum Zarkov 7.32% APS Alliance for Rights and Freedoms Minority interests (Turks) Centre Collective leadership 7.24% ITN There is Such a People National conservatism Right-wing Slavi Trifonov 6.56% MECh Morality, Unity, Honour Right-wing populism Far-right Radostin Vassilev 4.45% Velichie Velichie Bulgarian nationalism Far-right Albena Pekova 3.87%

Contesting parties and coalitions There were 24 official parties and coalitions that registered lists for the Bulgarian parliamentary election and were present on the ballot for the election.