Bulgarian President Georgy Parvanov won re-election over ultranationalist challenger Volen Siderov, the central electoral committee said yesterday.
It said a count of more than 98 percent of the ballots gave Parvanov 75.7 percent of the vote, while his rival scored 24.3 percent.
"This is an unprecedented, historic result," he said at a news conference.
"The result is a recognition of the policies we followed during our first five-year term," he said, adding that he would continue to be a president with "a clear social engagement at home."
Parvanov is the first Bulgarian president to be re-elected since the fall of communism in 1989, and is now all but certain to fulfill his dream of presiding over the entry of his Balkan nation into the EU on Jan. 1.
He promised to continue what he called an "active" and "consistent" foreign policy.
"It will be oriented towards securing a dignified European Union membership, and at the same time maintaining our national identity and working in solidarity with our European partners."
Parvanov, a former leader of the Socialist Party who prided himself in being "the president of all Bulgarians," won the first ballot last weekend with a commanding lead of 64 percent against Siderov's 21.5 percent but failed to avert a runoff as voter participation was below 50 percent.
No minimum turnout was required in the second round. The election committee said turnout by early Sunday evening was 41.2 percent.
Under Parvanov's leadership, Bulgaria joined NATO in 2004 and earlier this year received the green light to join the EU.
He also played a key role in the formation of the Socialist-led government after inconclusive general elections last year.
A proponent of ethnic tolerance, he developed good relations with the Turkish minority Movement for Rights and Freedoms party. He was fiercely attacked as a "Turkish puppet" by runner-up Siderov, known for his hostile statements against Bulgaria's Roma and Turkish minorities.
Siderov garnered support from many disillusioned Bulgarians, impoverished during the transition period from communism and apprehensive about the challenges of EU membership.
By simply gaining a berth in the final race, the former journalist changed the political landscape by ripping apart its traditional balance between moderate left and right-wing parties.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
RSS