Bulgaria, Early Parliamentary Elections, 19 April 2026

Following an invitation to observe the 19 April early parliamentary elections in Bulgaria, based on the findings and conclusions of the Needs Assessment Mission (NAM), undertaken from 16 to 19 February 2026, and in accordance with its mandate, ODIHR has deployed an Election Observation Mission (EOM).

Long-term Observation

The ODIHR EOM, headed by Dunja MIJATOVIĆ, began its work in Bulgaria on 12 March. It consists of 12 international experts based in Sofia. In addition, 14 long-term observers will be deployed throughout the country from 20 March.

The mission will assess whether the elections are held in line with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as with national legislation. 

Observers will closely follow fundamental components of the elections, such as:

• voter registration,
• candidate registration,
• conduct of the campaign, including online,
• transparency and oversight of campaign finance
• the work of the election administration and relevant government bodies,
• election-related legislation and its implementation,
• preparedness of state institutions to potential hybrid threats,
• the resolution of election-related disputes,
• participation of underrepresented groups,
• election accessibility.

The ODIHR EOM will also conduct qualitative and quantitative monitoring of media coverage of the election campaign. The ODIHR EOM will also conduct a limited qualitative and quantitative observation of election campaigns on social networks.

Election Day

ODIHR will request the secondment of 200 short-term observers from OSCE participating States to follow the election day proceedings. The short-term observers will be deployed throughout the country in multinational teams of two, which will observe:

• opening of polling stations,
• voting,
• counting of ballots,
• tabulation of results at all levels.

The day after the elections, ODIHR will issue a statement of preliminary findings and conclusions at a press conference. A final report on the observation of the entire electoral process will be issued some months after the end of the election process.

Previous Elections

ODIHR has previously observed 15 elections in Bulgaria. Most recently, ODIHR deployed an Election Expert Team (EET) for the June 2024 early parliamentary elections.