SEC: Independent candidates need to collect only two signaures by voters to run in 2025 local elections
Skopje, 18 August 2025 (MIA) – Two signatures by two voters will be necessary to allow independent candidates to run for councillors and mayors in the October local elections. This is envisaged in the new handbook regulating the signature collection procedure to endorse candidates’ lists filed by a group of voters in the 2025 local elections, passed at Sunday’s session of the State Election Commission (SEC) with six votes in favor and one against.
SEC member Aleksandar Dashtevski proposed the handbook citing Article 63 of the Electoral Code, which, as he said, hasn’t be scrapped, and which regulates the procedure for collecting signatures to nominate candidates, even though Article 62, which refers to the local elections, was revoked by the Constitutional Court.
“Parliament had failed twice to regulate the matter involving the number of signatures required to propose a candidate list by a group of voters. Thus, the SEC was forced to apply the Electoral Code provisions the way they are in the interest of organizing the election process. In fact, signatures shouldn’t have been required, but the new handbook proposes that at least two signatures by at least two voters should be collected, which in fact, doesn’t change anything,” said SEC president Boris Kondarko.
At an August 9 session, the SEC decided to rescind the 2024 handbook regulating the signature collection procedure as a result of the Constitutional Court decision revoking articles 61 and 62 of the Electoral Code that defined the number/percentage of signatures to propose lists by a group of voters.
On Saturday, Parliament at its 66th session failed to adopt amendments to the Electoral Code regulating the percentage of signatures independent candidates have to collect to run in the local elections. The majority of the MPs backed the proposed amendments, but given that the bill concerns local elections, Badinter majority was also required. Eighteen MPs from smaller ethnic communities were against the proposed amendments, whereas 11 voted in favour.
MIA file photo
