Macedonia: End of the Gruevski government?

On 27 February 2017 Zoran Zaev, the leader of the opposition Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), presented President Gjorgje Ivanov with the signatures of deputies who have declared their support for his government. In addition to members of the SDSM, the list also included representatives of three of the four main ethnic Albanian parties: the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), the BESA movement, and the Coalition for Albanians (AzA).

This marked the first step on the road to the opposition taking power in the country, which will mean the end of the rule of the centre-right VMRO-DPMNE under the former long-time Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski. In the early general elections held on 11 December 2016, Gruevski’s party won just 1 per cent more votes than the SDSM. In this situation, it became necessary to gain the support of at least some of the four ethnic Albanian groups that entered parliament in order to form a coalition government.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Macedonia: All even, advantage Gruevski http://www.europeansources.info/record/macedonia-all-even-advantage-gruevski/

ESO: Background information: Macedonia’s nationalists, Social Democrats, almost tied in parliamentary vote http://www.europeansources.info/record/macedonias-nationalists-social-democrats-almost-tied-in-parliamentary-vote/

---