SOFIA, Bulgaria (AFP) — Bulgarians began voting Sunday in their fourth general election in 18 months, anxious about soaring consumer prices and energy costs ahead of a winter overshadowed by the Ukraine war.

While endemic corruption was the focus of the previous vote last November, economic woes are now top of voters' concerns.

The European Union's poorest member state is battling annual inflation of close to 20 percent.

"Voters are preoccupied with the prices a lot more than with the geostrategical topics that political parties bicker about," political analyst Antony Todorov told AFP before polls opened at 7 a.m. They will close at 8 p.m.

Recent studies revealed "a fear of winter" among many Bulgarians worried about the looming impact of rising costs for heating and food.

Attempting to address those fears, former three-time premier Boyko Borisov — who is eyeing another comeback — pledged to supporters Friday to combat "the chaos."

The 63-year-old who dominated politics for a decade until last year told a final campaign event in the central city of Plovdiv that he would "work for the stability of the country."

Polls on the eve of the ballot put his conservative GERB party in front, with about 25 percent of the votes.