Macedonian parliamentary election

Heating Up

The junior ruling ethnic Albanian party in North Macedonia has reacted with dismay to the announcement of a new election alliance between its senior partner and another ethnic Albanian party.

A senior official from the Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, said the new agreement between the Social Democrats and BESA would only damage the Albanian vote in the April general elections.

After a year of unsuccessful talks with the opposition and after a week of tense efforts to secure a majority in parliament, the ruling Social Democrats in North Macedonia narrowly shepherded an important law through parliament amid loud objections from the opposition about the regularity of the vote.

In what looked like a closely coordinated move, the junior partner in the coalition government in North Macedonia, the Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, and the main opposition VMRO DPMNE party, on Thursday submitted thousands of amendments to the proposed change to the electoral law.

Polls opened early Sunday in North Macedonia for a presidential election seen as a key test for the government following the country's changing its name to end a decades-old dispute with neighboring Greece over the use of the term "Macedonia".

More than 3,400 polling stations opened at 7 a.m. local time (0500 GMT) and will close at 7 p.m. (1700GMT).

The main ruling and opposition parties in Macedonia are both tempted by the prospect of early legislative elections – but for very different reasons.

The government of Prime Minister Zoran Zaev has secured the parliamentary majority required to finalize the four constitutional amendments that will change the name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to North Macedonia, a ruling party spokesman cited by MIA news agency reported on Friday.

The criminal court of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), which is investigating allegations of unlawful political financing, has ordered a temporary freeze on the sale or lease of 69 properties owned by the main opposition VMRO-DPMNE, including its headquarters.

The right-wing VMRO DPMNE opposition party cannot sell or rent its lavish 'white palace' HQ in central Skopje, nor many of its other real-estate assets across the country, until the end of the major money-laundering case codenamed 'Talir', the Special Prosecution, SJO told BIRN on Thursday.

Skopje Criminal Court issued this ruling on Wednesday, the sources said.

The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) appears to be heading for early elections in November as it seems unlikely the government will secure the two-thirds majority needed in Parliament to ratify the name deal with Greece.