The Bulgarian president announced on Monday August 1 the holding of new elections on October 2, the fourth in a year and a half, after the fall of the reformist government of Kiril Petkov at the end of June.
Roumen Radev signed a decree dissolving parliament as of August 2 and setting the date for the new poll, according to a statement.
He has also appointed an interim cabinet, which will be led by his demography and social policy adviser Galab Donev.
Kiril Petkov, who had in December, at the end of the third legislative elections of the year, succeeded in forming a motley coalition lost the support of one of the parties before being overthrown by a motion of censure after six months barely.
Since then, no party has managed to gather a sufficient majority to govern.
Hence the need to call the Bulgarians back to the polls.
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Elected to fight corruption in this poorest country in the European Union, the Harvard-educated liberal prime minister was caught up in the war in Ukraine.
The conflict has heightened internal tensions in this traditionally Russophile land, from the delivery of military aid to the disruption of gas supplies by Moscow.
Bulgaria has been plagued since the summer of 2020 by instability triggered by massive protests against conservative Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, then in power almost without interruption since 2009. Analysts predict a new Parliament equally fragmented, with no less than seven parties likely to contest the 240 seats, according to three recent polls.
The political crisis is likely to aggravate the economic woes of this Balkan country, faced with galloping inflation and concerns about energy supplies this winter.