Sofia, Aug 27 (IANS): Bulgarian President Rumen Radev on Tuesday signed a decree to hold parliamentary elections on October 27, his press office said in a statement.

The statement said Radev also appointed a caretaker government led by current caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev for the interim period, Xinhua news agency reported.

Glavchev, 61, was head of the Bulgarian National Audit Office when he was appointed caretaker Prime Minister for the first time in April this year. In 2017, he briefly served as President of the National Assembly, the country's Parliament.

The elections and the appointment of a caretaker government became compulsory after the Parliament failed to elect a regular Cabinet in June this year.

The elections will be Bulgaria's seventh in three-and-a-half years due to an inability to reach a simple majority in the Parliament.

The European nation with a population of around 6.7 million, political instability has gripped Bulgaria since 2020 when mass protests broke out against 'corrupt politicians' who reportedly allowed oligarchs to take control of the state institutions.

However, only two out of the six previous snap polls resulted in an elected government. An on both occasions, the government fell down after reform-oriented politicians attempted to cut off the country's energy and security reliance on Russia.