Skopje, 8 May 2024 (MIA) - Polling stations for Wednesday’s presidential runoff and parliamentary elections closed at 7 pm.

A total of 1,814,317 voters across 3,480 polling stations were eligible to vote at the presidential elections, choosing between VMRO-DPMNE candidate Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova and SDSM-backed Stevo Pendarovski.

A candidate is elected president if he/she receives the majority of at least 40 percent of registered votes, namely 362,864 out of the 725,727 votes, as stipulated in the Electoral Code.

A total of 1.815.350 citizens were eligible to vote at the parliamentary elections, of whom 1,716,664 in the country, while 96,010 in a separate excerpt of the Electoral Roll for persons working or residing abroad.

Voters across six election districts could choose from the SDSM-led coalition, VMRO-DPMNE-led coalition, GROM-led coalition, DUI-led coalition, Levica, Worth It coalition, ZNAM, Edinstvena Makedonija, Nova Alternativa, Avaja, European Civil Movement, Makedonska Era Treta, Tvoja Partija, Rodina Makedonija, Desna, Demokrati and Workers' Party.

Turnout by 5 p.m. stood at 42.32% for the presidential runoff and 46.93% for the parliamentary elections.

According to preliminary assessments by the State Election Commission (SEC), the Ministry of Interior and observers, Election Day was peaceful and problem-free.

Emigrants, inmates, internally displaced persons and the infirm voted yesterday.

SEC will release the voting results successively, as it receives them from the polling stations.

The SEC has said that the presidential runoff and the parliamentary elections are monitored by 1,303 domestic and 860 foreign observers, along with 85 interpreters and 83 foreign journalists.

Photo: MIA