Elections

About 225 million American citizens are eligible to vote on Tuesday and elect the country's new president.

Media reports suggest, citing polls, that the outcome of U.S. elections has never been more uncertain.

Some 106 312 Bulgarian nationals living out of the country have cast ballots in the presidential elections, the Foreign Ministry has said.

Data as of 17:00 Bulgarian time (EET) shows 31 888 people voted in Turkey, 17 864 took part in the UK, and 10 441 in Spain.

The final count of votes in Bulgaria's three-point referendum may make its result binding in a surprise move, data from the election authorities shows.

If confirmed, the calculation will not match exit poll projections it does not meet the threshold.

The referendum on the political system may fall short of the turnout needed to make the results mandatory, pollster Alpha Research says.

A newly introduced "protest vote" option has fared better than some of the candidates in the presidential election in Bulgaria, official figures show.

With nearly half of the vote counted, more than 5.80% have cast a ballot ticking "I Do Not Support Anyone", added after voting was made compulsory earlier this year.

Bulgarian voters have backed the introduction of a first-past-the-post system, compulsory voting, and a drastic slash in state subsidies handed to political parties, exit poll data shows.

A referendum on three issues is being held on Sunday alongside the presidential election.

Polling stations across Bulgaria will not close at 20:00 but at 21:00 as voting for president still goes on, authorities say.

People are still lining up to cast ballots, under a newly adopted regime of compulsory voting.

The election day will thus continue after first exit polls are announced, giving last-minute voters crucial importance in case of a narrow lead.

Voter turnout was higher at 17:00 local time (EET) in Sunday's presidential election in Bulgaria compared to the 2011 voter for head of state, authorities say.

The activity was 44.83% at the time, up from the 38.76% in 2011, Central Election Commission (CEC) data shows.

People have been lining up to vote in many polling stations abroad, Bulgaria's electoral authorities report as the country is choosing its next President.

In addition, a claim of ballot shortage has been filed with the election watchdog, Focus News Agency has quoted the Central Election Commission (CEC)'s spokesperson Tsvetozar Tomov as saying.

Nearly a third of Bulgarian voters had cast a ballot in Sunday's presidential elections as of 13:00 local time (EET), authorities say.

Activity was 26.2% as of that hour, much above the rate registered in 2011 when it was 17.64%, according to Central Election Commission (CEC) data.

At 10:00 the turnout was slightly above 10.3%.