Bulgaria's political parties in 2026: who is in parliament

Five parties sit in Bulgaria’s 52nd National Assembly, elected on 19 April 2026. According to the final Central Election Commission (CEC) distribution reported by Novinite, Progressive Bulgaria has 131 of 240 seats, followed by GERB-SDS (39), PP-DB (37), DPS (21) and Vazrazhdane (12). Progressive Bulgaria governs alone, with Rumen Radev as prime minister since 8 May 2026.

As of October 2026. Varna Pulse does not take sides; labels below are attributed to the outlets that use them.

Which five parties are in parliament?

Party	Seats	Led by	Runoff (1 Nov)
Progressive Bulgaria (PB)	131	Rumen Radev	backs Yotova
GERB-SDS	39	Boyko Borissov	no candidate
PP-DB	37	Asen Vassilev, Nikolai Denkov (per Novinite)	backs Gyurov
DPS	21	Delyan Peevski	not confirmed
Vazrazhdane	12	Kostadin Kostadinov	no endorsement confirmed

For vote shares and turnout see our 2026 election results page; for how the system works, our explainer on Bulgarian politics.

What is Progressive Bulgaria?

It is the party formed around former president Rumen Radev for the April 2026 snap election. It campaigned on fighting corruption and dismantling what it calls the “oligarchic model”, according to the Sofia University analyst writing for Who Governs Europe, who also notes that critics point to Radev’s “pro-Russian positions and soft Euroscepticism”, while judging an “Orbanisation” scenario less likely. In government it stopped arms supplies to Ukraine from army depots in June 2026, BTA reported. Euronews says its presidential candidate, Iliana Yotova, favours dialogue with Moscow.

What are GERB, PP-DB, DPS and Vazrazhdane?

• GERB-SDS (Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria), led by Boyko Borissov, is described as centre-right by Who Governs Europe; April 2026 was its worst result. Borissov said a separate “pro-European” GERB candidate would only split the vote, so the party fielded none (Sofia Globe).
• PP-DB (We Continue the Change–Democratic Bulgaria) is called the “pro-Western reformist opposition” by Euronews. On 10 June 2026 Democratic Bulgaria, like GERB, criticised the end of arms supplies to Ukraine, BTA reported.
• DPS (Movement for Rights and Freedoms), founded in 1990, traditionally draws support from Turkish and Muslim voters, according to Novinite. Its chairman Delyan Peevski is under US Magnitsky sanctions; see our Peevski explainer.
• Vazrazhdane (Revival), led by Kostadin Kostadinov, is labelled “far-right and pro-Russian” by Who Governs Europe. It campaigned against the euro and tabled a bill to end the Bulgaria–Ukraine cooperation agreement, which parliament rejected 10–160–14 on 1 July 2026 (BTA). Kostadinov came third in the presidential first round with 12.55% (CEC via BTA).

Why did the DPS split?

In 2024 the DPS divided between a faction led by Peevski and one loyal to founder Ahmed Dogan. Courts recognised the Peevski-led DPS as the registered party. In July 2025 Dogan accused Peevski of having “hijacked” the party and announced a new project under the Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (APS), Novinite reported. APS won no seats in April 2026; its future role is unclear. More on the community in our Bulgaria–Turkey page.

Which parties back which presidential candidate?

Iliana Yotova is backed by PB and the BSP; Andrey Gyurov runs via an initiative committee supported by PP and DB (Sofia Globe). The runoff is on 1 November 2026: see our runoff page.

What it means for Varna residents and visitors

With one party holding a majority, laws such as the 2027 budget can pass without coalition deals. Only Bulgarian citizens vote in national elections; EU citizens living in Varna vote in local and European elections.