„At this point we would have a parliament with approximate parity between GERB, PP-DB and a possible new party. This again forms the question – Where is Bulgaria heading? What type of coalitions, what type of alliances?“, said in „120 minutes“ the sociologist from „Alpha Research“ Boryana Dimitrova.
Over 40% of respondents in a survey by the sociological agency at the end of last year said that the best option for governing the country is related to a new party.
According to Boryana Dimitrova, not all respondents are referring to the president's party. She specified that the people who trust Radev are about 20%, which, according to her, forms an extremely interesting picture.
The sociologist clarified that this is not a direct electoral question and is not a request that a person will cast their ballot for this or that entity, but rather a preference for what type of government the voter wants.
“We do not have a total unraveling of the political system, but rather some type of rearrangement can be expected“, commented Boryana Dimitrova.
“However, we cannot pretend that there is no elephant in the room. Everyone is talking, on the one hand, whether the president will have his own political project. Will he participate in these elections or not. For us as sociologists, it is worrying both to pretend that there is no such possibility and not to see what public expectations are in this direction, and to instill preliminary attitudes that are not a fact at this point“, said the sociologist.
„That is why we asked a more general question – what type of government do you expect. We have these 40% who say that they prefer government around a new political party. This does not always mean one political entity. When we cross this question with people's preferences, we see that under government around a new political entity, a very wide range of modalities is meant“, explained Dimitrova.
„From those who want a new, more true right-wing party, others want a left, nationalist, Eurosceptic, Eurosceptic. There is a diverse crowd,” she added.
“This is not necessarily an expression of focus on one political project. This is more an expression of dissatisfaction with the way political governance is currently constructed“, Boryana Dimitrova explained.
According to her, in this study, the parliament marks a historical anti-record with a trust of only 5%.
She also said that it is interesting that higher voter turnout is expected and up to half a million people will go to the polls. This means about 10% higher voter turnout.
“An increase in voter turnout has at least three very important consequences. First - much higher legitimacy of the chosen one, and second - it reduces the weight of the bought vote. This also means the entry of new social groups into the vote - the youngest“, commented Boryana Dimitrova.
Euro – word of 2025
„Bulgarian public opinion remains divided regarding the adoption of the euro - supporters dominate by about 6-7 points. Over the course of the year, they increased. Fears stemming from fake news decreased. It was the word of the year because there was both resistance and expectations“, commented the sociologist from „Alpha Research“.
„The euro was a dream of generations of Bulgarians. But it also became a possible starting point for creating new political projects. So in the word „euro“ different layers of Bulgarian society are crystallizing“, she added.
“The big line is Bulgaria's European affiliation and we do not see a serious fault line on this issue“, said Boryana Dimitrova.