Pop Star’s Win in Bulgaria Vote Doesn’t Fix Political Crisis
- Anti-establishment ITN edges ex-Premier Borissov’s Gerb
- No party has clear path to majority-backed ruling coaltion
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A pop star’s party won Bulgaria’s do-over elections by a razor-thin margin, ending more than a decade of dominance under former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov but falling short of the majority needed to end a political crisis.
Stanislav Trifonov, who hosts Bulgaria’s most popular late-night show and fills stadiums from London to Los Angeles performing the Balkan analog of gangster rap, tapped into widespread voter discontent over the European Union’s lowest living standards and worst corruption. The nation is also struggling to catch up vaccinating against Covid-19, where it ranks last in the bloc.