Pendarovski elected North Macedonia's president

Stevo Pendarovski, the presidential candidate backed by North Macedonia's center-left government, won the presidency Sunday in a runoff election with a conservative rival.

State election commission chief Oliver Derkorski announced late Sunday that with nearly 99 percent of the votes counted, Pendarovski, the candidate of the ruling Social Democratic Union, had won with 51.8% of the votes. Gordana Siljanovska Davkova, the candidate favored by the conservative opposition VMRO-DPMNE party, got 44.5%.

The two politicians had each received about 42% in the first round of voting April 21, which had three candidates.

Even before the official announcement, Social Democrat supporters had gathered at the party's headquarters in downtown Skopje, the country's capital, to celebrate as favorable results trickled in.

"This is a victory for all who are convinced that...

Continue reading on: