Bulgaria 1997 general election
What was the result of the 1997 general election in Bulgaria?
United Democratic Forces won 137 of 240 seats with 49.1% of the vote. 58.9% of registered voters cast a ballot.
Bulgaria- Held:
- Final result
- ParlGov, read 5 October 2026
Which party won the most seats?
Final results from ParlGov, read : United Democratic Forces won 137 of 240 seats with 49.1% of the vote; 58.9% of registered voters cast a ballot, down 16.4 points on 1994.
- United Democratic Forces 137 49.1%
- Coalition for Bulgaria / Democratic Left 58 −67 seats 22.4% −21.1 points
- Movement for Rights and Freedoms 19 +4 seats 7.6% +2.2 points
- Euro-Left Coalition 14 5.6%
- Bulgarian Business Bloc 12 −1 seat 5.3% +0.5 points
- Communist Party of Bulgaria 0 0 seats 1.3% −0.2 points
- Union for Tzar [Simeon II] 0 1.1%
- Seats won
- Change on the previous election at the right
- Share of the vote
- Share at the previous election
- Change in points at the right
Changes are against the Bulgaria 1994 general election, party by party.
- United Democratic Forces137
- Coalition for Bulgaria / Democratic Left58
- Movement for Rights and Freedoms19
- Euro-Left Coalition14
- Bulgarian Business Bloc12
Key numbers
49.1%
Share of the vote won by United Democratic Forces and its allies
United Democratic Forces and its allies won 137 of 240 seats. A majority needs 121.
+0.5 points
Share of the vote gained by Bulgarian Business Bloc
The largest gain in votes compared with 1994. Communist Party of Bulgaria lost 0.2 points.
58.9%
Voter turnout
Down 16.4 points on 1994.
Seats and votes by party
| Party | Seats | ± seats | % | ± points | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Democratic Forceswith Union of Democratic Forces, Agrarian People's Union, Party of Bulgarian Social Democrats and Democratic Party | 137 | 49.1 | 2,223,714 | ||
| Coalition for Bulgaria / Democratic Leftwith Bulgarian Socialist Party, Political Club "Ecoglasnost" and Agrarian Union "Aleksandar Stamboliyski" | 58 | −67 | 22.4 | −21.1 | 939,308 |
| Movement for Rights and Freedomswith Green Party of Bulgaria, "New Choice" Union and Bulgarian Agrarian National Union | 19 | +4 | 7.6 | +2.2 | 323,429 |
| Euro-Left Coalition | 14 | 5.6 | 234,058 | ||
| Bulgarian Business Bloc | 12 | −1 | 5.3 | +0.5 | 209,796 |
| Communist Party of Bulgaria | 0 | 0 | 1.3 | −0.2 | 50,864 |
| Union for Tzar [Simeon II] | 0 | 1.1 | 46,765 |
± is the change against the Bulgaria 1994 general election, party by party.
Votes by party
- United Democratic Forces 2,223,714
- Coalition for Bulgaria / Democratic Left 939,308
- Movement for Rights and Freedoms 323,429
- Euro-Left Coalition 234,058
- Bulgarian Business Bloc 209,796
- Communist Party of Bulgaria 50,864
- Union for Tzar [Simeon II] 46,765
ParlGov lists parties with at least 1 percent of the vote or 2 seats, so the rows do not add up to the valid votes.
ParlGov counts an alliance's votes and seats under its first party: such a row names the allies it counts.
How many people voted?
58.9% of the 7,289,956 registered voters cast a ballot (4,291,258 ballots), down 16.4 points on 1994. 4,256,928 of them were valid votes.
How do the votes compare with the seats?
- United Democratic Forces49.1% of votes57.1% of seats
- Coalition for Bulgaria / Democratic Left22.4% of votes24.2% of seats
- Movement for Rights and Freedoms7.6% of votes7.9% of seats
- Euro-Left Coalition5.6% of votes5.8% of seats
- Bulgarian Business Bloc5.3% of votes5.0% of seats
The Gallagher index of disproportionality is 5.9 (0 when seats follow votes exactly); the effective number of parties is 3.3 by votes and 2.5 by seats; United Democratic Forces led Coalition for Bulgaria / Democratic Left by 26.7 points of the vote.
Time and source Data as of