"The December protests drew hundreds of thousands of mainly young people to the streets. The protesters called for an independent judiciary to tackle widespread corruption."
"Radev, a former air force general, has said he wants to rid the country of its oligarchic governance model and backed anti-corruption protests late last year that brought down the conservative-backed government."
"Since 2021, the nation of 6.5 million has struggled with fragmented parliaments that produced weak governments. None managed to survive more than a year before being brought down by street protests or backroom deals in parliament."
Bulgarians are voting in their eighth parliamentary election in five years after mass protests led to the fall of the Conservative government. Polling stations opened at 7am local time and will close at 5pm GMT. The election is crucial as it may bring former president Rumen Radev to power, who advocates for anti-corruption and closer ties with Russia. Radev resigned from the presidency to run for prime minister and leads the centre-left grouping, Progressive Bulgaria. The nation has faced political instability with fragmented parliaments since 2021.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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