North Macedonia holds presidential and parliamentary elections Wed

Voters in Northern Macedonia go to the polls Wednesday for a double election - parliamentary and presidential - following a campaign in which the country's aspirations to join the European Union have played a central role.

The office of prime minister wields the real power, and the president is largely ceremonial, so the parliamentary election is the more important of the two contests. The opposition center-right coalition, which is pushing back against neighboring Bulgaria's conditions for the country's EU candidacy, is favored to win both elections.

The election for the unicameral parliament takes place in a single round, while the presidential election is the runoff of a two-round contest that began in April with the center-right candidate scoring a large lead over the center-left incumbent.

More than 1,700 candidates are competing for the unicameral...