Bulgaria was the first country in Eastern Europe where a former Communist Party won free and democratic Parliamentary elections. This political response of the Bulgarian electorate, rather unexpected at that time, could be linked to—among other factors—the geographic position of the country in relation to the place of origin of the political transformation processes. The comparative analysis of the geographic patterns of Bulgaria's major political parties displayed a deep social split, primarily along ideological lines. However, the configuration and performance of the main political actors on the eve of elections proved to be of relatively little importance for the Bulgarian political transformation. Bulgarian society was once again compelled to adapt to external influences, this time coming predominantly from the core of the Soviet-led international system, rather than to an urgent need to solve internal political economic contradictions. The term ‘superimposition of peripheries’ was introduced to describe the political geography and suggest an explanation of the 1990 election results.