Skopje, 3 October 2025 (MIA) – The campaign for the October 19 local elections continues Friday on day five with the candidates running for mayors presenting their election programs at rallies across the country.

VMRO-DPMNE will hold rallies in Novaci, Mogila with the central rally taking place in Bitola in the evening.

SDSM’s election campaign caravan will have stops in Debarca and Vevchani, Struga. The central rally will be in Ohrid.

Valbon Limani, the candidate for mayor of Gostivar nominated by the coalition AKI, will present the election program this afternoon at an event in Gostivar.

Levica leader will be also in Gostivar for meetings with supporters to promote the candidate for Gostivar mayor, Darko Grujoski. Later in the day, Apasiev will be in Tetovo to endorse Levica’s candidate for Tetovo mayor, Katka Bozhinoska.

Visar Ademi, an independent candidate running for mayor of Gostivar, will present his election program 2025-2029 at an event.

The party Democrats will hold a news conference outside the Constitutional Court at noon.

The local election campaign, which began on Monday, ends on October 17 before a 24-hour election silence starts on the eve of the October 19 elections. The second round of this year’s local elections takes place on November 2. 

According to the Electoral Code, Article 69a, “an election campaign is considered a public gathering and other public events organized by a participant in the election campaign, public display of posters, video presentations in public places, election media and online presentation, distribution of printed materials and public presentation of candidates confirmed by the competent election authorities and their programs.”

309 mayoral candidates and 576 list of candidates for members of municipal councils – a total of 10,490 candidates – will be vying in the elections. Votes will be cast in 3,480 polling stations.

22 parties, 19 coalitions and 119 independent candidates will participate. A total of 16 candidates run for Skopje mayor.

There are a total of 1,832,415 voters registered in the voters list ahead of the October local elections. 

MIA file photo