The new generation votes for its future
Sudenur Alpdavut
The election traffic in Bulgaria is calling dual citizens living in Turkey to the ballot boxes. The increase in young voters among those voting is drawing attention. The age difference in voter profiles brings concepts such as sociological belonging and economic rationality to mind.
In recent years, the chronic election processes and repeated early general elections in Bulgaria have been attracting attention. This process, which brings the political participation of dual citizens living in Turkey back to the agenda, also helps increase the number of ballot boxes and voter participation in Turkey. The ballot boxes set up all around Turkey represent not only a voting process but also the determination of political balances in the Balkans region. In addition to the groups who traditionally go to vote because of their loyalty to their ancestral lands, the voters who prioritize the economic and legal opportunities offered by EU citizenship have also joined in recent years.
Generation difference and economic expectations
This change in the voter profile is also changing the demands at the ballot box. For first-generation immigrants, issues such as democratic rights and retirement in Bulgaria are priorities. On the other hand, for young dual citizens who grew up in Turkey, the process is more related to academic and professional future plans. Especially because of the current economic situation in Turkey, young people now see Bulgarian and therefore European Union citizenship not as an emotional connection, but as a “strategic security area.”
Euro and employment from the perspective of a finance student
The group that observes the economic and rational side of the process most clearly is young voters studying economics and finance. Dual citizen Melisa Altın, who evaluates the process from the perspective of a finance student, places the act of voting in a balance between “a family heritage” and “a projection of the future.”
The student, who closely follows financial markets, sees Bulgaria’s transition to the euro at the beginning of 2026 as a turning point for investment security. Melisa points out the positive effect of joining the Eurozone on her personal investments, saying that it will make financial transactions and money transfers easier.
“Stability will bring employment”
The young voter explains her analytical expectations about Bulgaria’s economic future with these words:
“If economic stability can be achieved through being in the European Union and through the transition to the euro, it will be possible to solve structural problems such as unemployment and apply policies that increase employment opportunities. This improvement process means a safer investment environment not only for people living in Bulgaria, but also for us dual citizens.”
For dual citizens in Turkey, going to the ballot box is no longer only an emotional heritage passed down from older family members. Especially for the new generation voters interested in economics and finance, voting is seen as a rational bridge between the representation rights of Turks in Bulgaria and the economic security network offered by the European Union.
Every vote given for political stability in Bulgaria directly affects young professionals’ access to European financial markets and investment security. This election traffic between Turkey and Bulgaria will continue to be shaped in the coming years by the balance between “loyalty to the past” and “the economic rationality of the future.” At the ballot box, the new generation of dual citizens are voting not only for a political party, but also for their own professional living spaces and economic position within the European Union.
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