WBulgaria elects on national level a head of state - the president - and a legislature. The president is elected for a five-year term directly by the people. The National Assembly has 240 members, elected for a four-year term by proportional representation in multi-seat constituencies with a 4% threshold. Bulgaria has a multi-party system, in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties must work with each to form governments.
WConstituent Assembly elections were held in Bulgaria between 1 and 30 January 1879, although only 117 of the 231 members of the Assembly were elected during this period. It followed the country's liberation from the Ottoman Empire, and saw the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party emerge as the two main parties. The Assembly was opened on 10 February, and convened in Veliko Tarnovo to ratify the country's first constitution, known as the Tarnovo Constitution, on 16 April. The parliament was later transferred to Sofia, which became the capital of the country.
WConstitutional Assembly elections were held in Bulgaria in June 1881. The body known as the Grand National Assembly was convened for a second time in Svishtov in order to consider the amendments to the constitution proposed by prince Alexander I of Battenberg. The proposed amendments were an echo from the Conservative's requests during the first constitutional assembly elections back in 1879. The amendments proposed included restricting civil liberties, reducing the size of the National Assembly, making the franchise indirect and introducing a state council. These amendments would, in effect, suspend the constitution and turn Bulgaria into an authoritarian dictatorship.
WConstitutional Assembly elections were held in Bulgaria in 1886. The body known as the Grand National Assembly was convened for a third time in order to elect a new prince following the abdication of Alexander I. The assembly was composed of 493 representatives and convened on 19 October 1886. It then dissolved itself on 3 August 1887, having elected Ferdinand Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as the new prince of Bulgaria.
WConstitutional Assembly elections were held in Bulgaria in April 1893. The body known as the Grand National Assembly was convened for a fourth time in order to consider several amendments to the constitution, including ones concerning the religion of the monarchy and a reduction in the number of members of the National Assembly.
WConstitutional Assembly elections were held in Bulgaria on 5 June 1911. The result was a victory for the People's Party-Progressive Liberal Party alliance, which won 342 of the 410 seats. Voter turnout was 54.0%.
WConstitutional Assembly elections were held in Bulgaria on 27 October 1946. The elections served to elect members to the 6th Grand National Assembly, tasked with adopting a new constitution. The Fatherland Front, an anti-fascist coalition dominated by the Bulgarian Communist Party, had come to power in 1944 following a coup. Now that the Second World War was over and the monarchy abolished the communists wanted to adopt a new constitution. The Communists won a large majority, with 53.5 percent of the vote and 278 of the 465 seats. Voter turnout was 92.6%. This would be the lowest vote share that the Communists or the Fatherland Front would claim during the 43 years of undisguised Communist rule in Bulgaria. In subsequent years, the Fatherland Front would claim to win elections with unanimous or near-unanimous support.