Will election triumph unlock the EU talks stalemate? North Macedonia at crossroads

The VMRO-DPMNE-led coalition secured on 2 November a resounding victory in North Macedonia’s local elections, sweeping the second round and leaving no political excuse for Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski to delay constitutional changes demanded by the European Union.

With 98 percent of votes counted, the State election commission confirmed that VMRO-DPMNE triumphed in 21 of 33 municipal runoffs, including the capital Skopje, where Orce Georgievski will serve as mayor for the next four years.

The party also claimed control in Aerodrom, Karposh, Brvenica, Valandovo, Vinica, Debarca, Demir Kapija, Dojran, Kichevo, Konche, Kochani, Krusevo, Lozovo, Makedonski Brod, Mogila, Negotino, Probistip, Rankovce, Rosoman, Cheshinovo-Obleshevo, and Chucher Sandevo.

Its Albanian coalition partner, VLEN (also known as VREDI), prevailed in Bogovine, Debar, Dolneni, and Tetovo. The opposition Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) managed wins only in the Skopje municipality of Centre, Makedonska Kamenica, and Zarnovci. The National Alliance for Integration, dominated by the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), held Studenicani; the ZNAM movement retained Kumanovo through incumbent Maksim Dimitrievski; the Union of Roma kept Shuto Orizari; and an independent candidate took Struga.

Overall, after both rounds, VMRO-DPMNE controls 55 mayoral seats, VLEN holds 10, SDSM has six, the National Alliance for Integration four, and ZNAM and the Roma Union one each. Elections will be repeated in Vrapciste, Gostivar, Center Zhupa, and Mavrovo and Rostuse due to insufficient turnout, with dates to be set once final results are official.

Voter participation in the second round hovered around 41.8 percent, reflecting apathy amid high stakes. In Skopje, Georgievski captured 57.4 percent (93,313 votes) against Amar Mecinovic of the Left (Levica) party, who garnered 36.4 percent (59,178 votes) and doubled his first-round support, signaling a surge among younger voters despite the loss.

Mickoski hailed the outcome as a “great electoral victory” born of faith, hope, and the people’s dreams for a shared homeland.

SDSM leader Venko Filipce viewed the results as motivation to intensify opposition, vowing no repeat of the party’s 2024 parliamentary drubbing – he rejected resignation calls, citing his brief tenure and plans for a party congress to enact leadership changes.

Filipce accused the government of pressuring SDSM candidates in all 17 second-round contests. Levica, meanwhile, positioned itself as the emerging opposition anchor, urging SDSM backers to rally behind its left-wing vision.

Within the Albanian bloc, VLEN declared the “change among Albanians complete,” branding itself the country’s second political force and demanding DUI chairman Ali Ahmeti’s resignation.

Ahmeti framed the defeats as a wake-up call to bolster structures and voter outreach. His party suffered stinging losses in Tetovo (where VLEN’s Bilall Kasami secured a second term), Debar, and Kichevo, with Studenicani as a lone bright spot. VLEN’s Bashkim Bakiu confirmed convincing margins, including over 5,000 votes in Tetovo and 1,500 in Struga (via support for independent Mendi Qira).

Interior Minister Pance Toshkovski praised the process as peaceful, fair, and democratic, with the ministry logging just 30 irregularity reports—mostly agitation near stations or isolated bribery claims—and prosecutors noting no major disruptions.

The triumph amplifies pressure from Brussels: with Mickoski’s mandate unassailable, observers see no barrier to amending the constitution to recognize the Bulgarian minority, a prerequisite under the EU’s Negotiating Framework, agreed by all member states in 2022, which also incorporates conditions from the 2017 Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighborliness, and Cooperation with Bulgaria.

The prior SDSM-led government accepted the Negotiating Framework, launching negotiations in 2023 after nearly two decades of candidacy, but Mickoski’s administration now ties revisions to ironclad EU guarantees of no further Bulgarian demands, effectively halting progress once more. The impasse underscores a deeper question: does Mickoski wants to lead his country to the EU or not?

Sources: BGNES, MIA, IBNA

Ruling party secures landslide victory in North Macedonia’s local elections

Caption: North Macedonia’s Prime Minister and leader of the ruling VMRO DPMNE, Hristijan Mickoski (C) and his wife Roza (C-R) celebrate with the supporters as preliminary results of the second round of local elections were released in Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia, 02 November 2025. Mickoski claimed victory, saying the ruling VMRO-DPMNE won in 55 of the country’s 81 municipalities, including the capital, Skopje. EPA/GEORGI LICOVSKI