Public anger over the failure of Bulgaria’s political class to tackle rampant graft further eroded support for the two main political parties in October and boosted the number of people who say they will not vote, a poll showed on Monday.

The Socialist-led cabinet has faced street protests since it came to power in May and political analysts say it is unlikely to carry out its full four-year term.

Students have recently stepped up their protests against what they call the Socialists’ ties with murky business groups by occupying universities and the poll by independent Alpha Research showed 60 percent of Bulgarians support their actions.

Support for the Socialists dropped by one percentage point to 16.9 percent, according to the poll, which was conducted among 1,030 people between Oct 26 and 31.

A row over parliament’s attempt to extend a ban on selling arable land to foreigners also hurt the Socialists, the pollster said.

But the main opposition centre-right GERB party also saw its support fall, by 0.6 percentage points to 16.5 percent.

The previous GERB government fell in February amid protests over high utility bills and corruption.

By contrast, the number of people who said they would not vote in any new election rose to 40.3 percent from 34.4 percent a month earlier.

(Reuters)