Lyutvi Mestan

A delegation of DOST party, led by its chair Lyutvi Mestan, held a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara, the party's press office has said.

Key DOST members accompanying Mestan included Shabanali Ahmed, Hyusein Hafazov and Aydoan Alo.

Uncertainty looms about the number of unknown candidates that are to register with Bulgaria's Central Electoral Commission to run in the presidential elections on November 06.

Ahmed Dogan, the honorary chair of the Movements and Freedoms Party (DPS), could be nominated for President of Bulgaria, the party's current head Mustafa Karadayi has said.

Bulgaria's Parliament turned down proposals to endorse the use of a language other than Bulgarian in election campaigns, BGNES reported on Tuesday.

Bulgaria's third-largest, predominantly ethnic Turk DPS party has elected Mustafa Karadayi as its chairman, the party's press office has said.

Karadayi had been pointed for months as the favourite to take over the party well before Sunday's national congress scheduled for the election of a new leader.

DOST party will work toward strengthening Bulgaria's relations with neighbouring Turkey, its leader Lyutvi Mestan has said.

"The Republic of Turkey can be of great help to us," Mestan told Turkey's Anadolu Agency on Sunday in his first interview for foreign media after last week's founding of DOST party.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has received Lyutvi Mestan, who was expelled as head of Bulgaria's third-largest DPS party.

At the government residency in the Cankaya district in Ankara, the two have discussed Bulgarian politics, members of Mestan's future party DOST have said in a press statement.

The leadership of Bulgaria's predominantly ethnic Turk DPS party met on Wednesday with opposition CHP while on a visit to Turkey, the party itself has announced.

Republican People's Party (CHP) chair Kemal Kilicdaroglu received Rushen Riza and Cetin Kazak, two of the three interim heads of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) party, a message on the DPS website adds.

Bulgaria's Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov on Friday say his institution had done its best to prevent a diplomatic conflict with Turkey from spiralling.

Speaking before lawmakers as part of a regular Q&A session with ministers, however, he acknowledged ties between the two countries had been strained by some recent developments.

The Bulgarian parliament adopted at first reading on Thursday draft amendments to the Electoral Code, which pave the way for the introduction of compulsory voting.

The amendments were adopted with 121 MPs voting in favour, 27 being against and 21 lawmakers abstaining, daily Dnevnik informs.