Page 8 of 8. Browse the published articles, or use site search.
A young man has died after a lightning strike during a thunderstorm on Mount Kom, with another person seriously injured, according to Bulgaria’s Mountain Rescue Service. The incident is a grim reminder that mountain weather here can turn dangerous very quickly.
Rumen Radev said his Progressive Bulgaria movement had achieved a “victory over apathy” after parallel counts put it on more than 44% of the vote and on course for over 130 seats. Official results are still pending, but the early picture suggests a sharply simplified parliament with practical implications for policy, administration and business in Bulgaria.
Provisional figures put voter participation at 25.9% by 2pm, noticeably ahead of the pace seen at the same point in the last parliamentary vote.
Bulgarians go to the polls on Sunday after months of protests, a government collapse and fresh allegations of vote-buying. For British expats, the immediate issue is less who to back than what another unstable result could mean for day-to-day life, public administration and Bulgaria’s wider direction inside Europe.
Spartak Varna beat regular-season winners Shumen 61 25-24 away on 18 April to open their Bulgarian men’s handball semi-final with an upset, while defending champions Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa took a more comfortable 32-24 win over Fregata.
Police in Shumen region say they found a notebook containing names and figures, along with €1,950 in cash, during searches of a car and property linked to a 47-year-old man from Smyadovo as part of an operation into suspected offences against citizens’ political rights.
An Audi collided with a Dacia on Shumen’s Simeon Veliki Boulevard before ending up inside a furniture shop, with three people taken to hospital. Police are still establishing exactly how the crash unfolded.
Netflix has increased its Bulgarian subscription prices across Basic, Standard and Premium. For British expats, the key point is simple: if your account is billed in Bulgaria, your monthly charge has already gone up.
Bulgaria is now applying its traveller duty-free allowances directly in euros: €300 for land arrivals and €430 for air arrivals from non-EU countries. The catch, as ever, is that the limit covers the total value of what you bring in, not each item separately.
Bulgarian National Bank governor Dimitar Radev says the euro did not arrive as a last-minute political stunt but as the end of a long institutional process. For Brits in Bulgaria, the practical issue now is less the slogan and more whether prices, contracts and banking stay clear and orderly.
Election officials in Shumen have stopped handing over paper ballots for Bulgaria’s snap parliamentary vote after spotting numbering discrepancies and ink marks on some ballot booklets. The Central Election Commission has been notified and a rapid decision is awaited.
Razgrad's Theatre in Motion festival has opened its 10th edition, bringing together more than 260 performers, professionals and young creators over three days.
Bulgaria’s Ministry of Defence, in a statement reported by BTA on 17 April 2026, said Land Forces personnel and equipment will travel by road and rail on 19 and 20 April to the Koren and Novo Selo training areas, with convoys escorted by the Military Police Service.
Bulgaria’s championship phase will begin with the Eternal Derby after the efbet League playoff draw paired CSKA Sofia with Levski Sofia in the opening round, while the run-in also leaves CSKA facing Ludogorets four times in just over a month.
Bulgaria’s doctors’ union has called for a 25% increase in payments for all medical activities under the public system, but the rise is not approved and officials say it depends on an unresolved 2026 National Health Insurance Fund budget.
Bulgarian police say they are carrying out nationwide operations against suspected vote-buying ahead of the 19 April 2026 parliamentary election, with cash, pre-marked sample ballots and other evidence reportedly found in several regions. The claims come via the Interior Ministry's acting secretary general, as reported by BTA, and remain part of active investigations rather than proven offences.
A cold front is set to bring showers, stronger winds and a dip in temperatures across Bulgaria on Saturday before conditions improve on Sunday 19 April, election day. The forecast points to a mostly sunny polling day in many areas, but travellers and voters should still watch for local rain and any official weather warnings.
Bulgaria's Interior Ministry says it has recorded 2,066 election-related crime and violation reports ahead of the 19 April parliamentary vote, with 534 proceedings opened and 360 people detained. The figures are sharply up on 2024, but they remain official data and allegations rather than proof of guilt.
Speaking in Plovdiv before Bulgaria's 19 April election, We Continue the Change leader Asen Vassilev ruled out any coalition with GERB or DPS, said joint governance with Rumen Radev's camp was impossible, and argued his party could still deliver key policies through parliamentary votes alone.