North Macedonia elects pro-western president

cde.news desk 6 May 2019, 07:30 · 1 min read

epa07549911 Stevo Pendarovski (C), the candidate of the ruling Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) celebrates with supporters after declaring election victory in Skopje, North Macedonia, 05 May 2019. More than 1.8 million voters were leigible to choose between two candidates for the President of North Macedonia in the second round of elections. EPA-EFE/GEORGI LICOVSKI

North Macedonia’s pro-western candidate, Stevo Pendarovski, won a run-off presidential vote after a campaign dominated by divisions over a change to the country’s name that was agreed to mollify Greece and open the way for EU and Nato membership.

The State Election Commission results based on 99.5% the votes counted showed 51.7% of the votes going to Pendarovski, who is the candidate of the ruling coalition and a long-serving senior civil servant and academic.

His rival, Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova of the nationalist VMRO-DPMNE, got 44.7% of the vote.The two finished neck-and-neck in the first round of voting two weeks ago. The victory puts more wind into the sails of the ruling coalition, which expects to get a date to start EU accession talks in June and become the 30th Nato member state next year.

Via The Guardian

Filed under Elections North Macedonia

Topics North Macedonia Skopje Stevo Pendarovski

North Macedonia elects pro-western president

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