By Tsvetelia Tsolova
SOFIA (Reuters) -The GERB party of ex-Prime Minister Boyko Borissov looked set to win Sunday’s election in Bulgaria, the nation’s fourth in under two years, with many voters looking for predictability from a former leader amid steep inflation and energy costs.
Exit polls by Gallup International and Alpha Research showed the centre-right GERB with 24.6%-25.5% of ballots.
GERB’s main rival, the reformist We Continue the Change party, led by Kiril Petkov, whose coalition government collapsed in June, came second with 18.9-19.9% according to the exit polls.
If confirmed, the result would herald tough coalition talks ahead that could still end in a hung parliament or even another ballot.
Either would prolong policy instability and raise the prospect of Sofia missing its 2024 target date for entry into the euro zone.
(Reporting by Tsvetelia TsolovaEditing by Nick Macfie, Gareth Jones and Frances Kerry)
