After eight snap elections in five years, Bulgaria’s Rumen Radev, a 62-year-old reform-minded pragmatist with much political (he’s a former president) and military (he's also a former general) experience has just managed to gain an absolute majority of seats in the national parliament. It is, according to Bloomberg “a landslide” and, for German mainstream flagship Spiegel, an “exorbitant victory.”

With this breakthrough, Radev’s party Progressive Bulgaria has also broken a long trend of inconclusive elections and now has very good chances of establishing a stable, lasting government after years of instability and scandals, climaxing in a full government collapse late last year.

Election participation was higher than usual, which is another signal of genuine popular support for Radev’s message and reinforces his mandate. Bulgaria has been suffering from prolonged gridlock and a massive crisis of public trust. No one can predict the future, but Radev promises a fresh beginning, and this election result at least provides a chance to make one. Moreover, Progressive Bulgaria’s voter appeal, polls show, has not only been deep but also wide: Gen-Z, older citizens, pro-EU voters and those often, in Western mainstream........

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