REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov

SOFIA (Reuters) - Bulgaria's center-right GERB party narrowly won a parliamentary election on Sunday, giving it a chance to form another government after leader Boiko Borisov resigned as prime minister in November, triggering the snap poll. The Alpha Research exit poll said GERB won 32.2 percent of the vote, with the Socialist Party coming in second with 28 percent, while a separate exit poll by Gallup International Balkan had GERB with 32.8 percent and the Socialists with 28.4 percent. Former Prime Minister Boiko Borisov said Sunday evening that GERB has the "duty to form a government because this is the will of the people and because we triggered these early elections." The Socialists, who had pledged to improve ties with Russia even if it meant upsetting EU partners, doubled their share of the vote compared to the last election in 2014 but failed to overtake the strongly pro-EU GERB. Borisov said during the election campaign that he could hold talks to form a coalition government with the United Patriots nationalist alliance and the small Reformist Bloc grouping, if it crosses the parliamentary threshold of 4 percent. A populist party named Volya (Will) may end up entering Parliament. The Bulgarian election on Sunday has sparked protests at the Turkish border for the last two days by nationalists who are determined to keep Bulgarian citizens living permanently in Turkey from coming in to vote. Socialist leader Kornelia Ninova wants EU sanctions against Russia lifted, seeks a bigger role for the state in the economy and has wooed voters with promises of higher salaries and pensions. The March 26 elections were a sequel to Borissov’s resignation as prime minister in November 2016 after his party’s candidate was defeated in presidential elections by Roumen Radev, who stood as the candidate of an initiative committee backed by the BSP.
Official results of yesterday's election are released today. An exit poll showed the centre-right GERB winning the most votes.