The president of the Republic of Bulgaria (, romanised: Prezident na Republika BÃÂlgariya) is the head of state of Bulgaria and the commander-in-chief of the Bulgarian Armed Forces. The official residence of the president is the Boyana Residence in Sofia.
The president's primary function is to serve as the arbitrator of disputes between Bulgaria's different institutions. They are not the head of government or part of the nation's executive power. However, when the National Assembly fails to elect a prime minister, the president appoints an interim government. As of 2026 this has happened on 12 occasions, by Zhelyu Zhelev in 1994-95; Petar Stoyanov in 1997; Rosen Plevneliev in 2013 and 2014; Rumen Radev in 2017, 2021, 2022 and 2024; Iliana Iotova in 2026.
The president is elected for a five-year term and is restricted to two terms, even if they are non-consecutive. After an individual has served two terms as president, that individual will forever be barred from being elected to the presidency again under Bulgaria's Constitution. The president addresses the nation on national television annually on New Year's Eve.
For a Bulgarian citizen to be able to run for the office of President of Bulgaria, they must fulfil the following conditions:
The president is elected directly by the Bulgarian people in a two-round election for a five-year term. If a candidate obtains at least 50% of the vote with at least 50% voter turnout, that candidate is elected. If this isn't the case, the top two candidates face off in a runoff election.
The president is barred from being a member of the National Assembly, as well as holding any other government, public or private offices for the duration of their term. The president is also constitutionally forbidden from being involved in a leadership position of a political party while in office. The president is however allowed to be a member of a political party.
The president of Bulgaria has a number of functions and powers that are regulated in Chapter 4 of the 1991 Constitution of Bulgaria.
The following powers belong to the president of Bulgaria:
The president enjoys blanket legal immunity during his or her tenure and is not held responsible for any act performed while on duty, with the exception of treason or violation of the Bulgarian constitution. His or her authority may only be stripped via impeachment and may not be removed by any other institution. The president cannot be detained and may not be prosecuted.
The most recent death of a former president was on 30 January 2015, when Zhelyu Zhelev died at age 79.
The president is assisted in their duties by the vice president of Bulgaria. The vice president replaces the president in case of absence. Upon the death, resignation or removal from office of the president, the vice president assumes the presidential office until the end of the term. The Constitution permits the president to delegate to the vice president certain powers, notably: to appoint and dismiss certain officials, issue pardons and amnesty, provide citizenship and refugee status. The VP enjoys the same privileges of immunity as the president and can only be dismissed from his office under the same procedure.
According to the constitution, the mandate of the president is completed if and when:
Impeachment can begin if the president has committed treason or has violated the Constitution of Bulgaria, after at least a quarter of the members of the National Assembly deposit an accusatory act before the assembly. The act must be approved by a 2/3 supermajority of MPs in order to be accepted. If accepted, the case is referred to the Constitutional Court of Bulgaria, which must decide within a one-month time period whether the president is guilty or innocent of the crime they have been accused of by the Assembly. If the constitutional court finds that the president has committed treason or violated the constitution, the president is impeached and is stripped of their authority.