Polls have closed in Bulgaria's fourth general election in 18 months, with turnout expected to be low as Bulgarians struggle with economic woes and tension regarding the neighboring Russia-Ukraine war.

The European Union's poorest member is struggling to stabilize its economy, with inflation at nearly 20%.

Borisov comeback in the offing? 

First exit polls favored former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, 63 and previously in power for the vast majority of the period from 2009 to 2021 in three separate stints.

Exit polls gave his conservative GERB party the lead, with around 25% support.

Prime Minister Kiril Petkov's centrist We Continue to Change (PP) party trailed behind, with nearly 19%.

Petkov's fragile coalition collapsed after only a few months in power. They lost a no-confidence vote last June. 

Prior to the vote, Petkov had said he would not form a coalition with Borisov under any circumstances. This could lead to difficulties finding any viable coalition with majority support.

Pro-Russian minority party also making gains 

Petkov's government's staunch anti-Russian stance in the war against Ukraine has also left it with a major energy crisis.

The Bulgarian government refused to pay for Russian gas in rubles. Soon afterwards, Russian energy giant Gazprom cut off supplies to the country.

Petkov's anti-Russia movements, despite Bulgaria's historic ties with Moscow, seem to have encouraged Russian sympathies. Early exit polls by Gallop International suggest the pro-Russia ultra-nationalist Revival has about 10% support, more than double its 4.9% vote during the last election.

This could pose as a major roadblock to the country's plans to join the eurozone single currency bloc by 2024, as might the double-digit inflation figures.

rmt/msh (AFP, AP, Reuters)