Skopje, 27 August 2025 (MIA) - SDSM leader Venko Filipche said at a press conference Wednesday that SDSM will run in the first round of the local elections with its current coalition, while for the second round he said the party would hold talks with other parties in the Albanian bloc.

The SDSM leader said that by the end of this week or the beginning of next, the names of the remaining mayoral candidates for the 2025 local elections will be published, and that in the coming period the programs of their candidates will be presented.

He expressed regret that the ruling coalition had done nothing to secure a majority in Parliament to adopt the amendments to the Electoral Code.

“The government did not try to secure a Badinter’s majority. We helped by accepting the proposal to reduce the number of required signatures for registering candidates from 1 percent, which was abolished by the Constitutional Court, to 0.5 percent, which we believe is fair and regulates that matter well,” Filipche said.

Asked if independent candidacies could draw away votes from SDSM in the election, Filipche did not answer, but pointed out that he personally supports the will of independents and citizens to nominate their own candidates.

“I believe this increases the opportunity for choice by the citizens and there should be more candidates. And we, of course, will fight with all our democratic capacity and instruments to earn the trust of the citizens,” Filipche stressed.

Filipche said SDSM would have a positive campaign in the local elections.

“We will not lower ourselves to that level. We will run a good, positive campaign. We will promote our candidates and our good policies. We will focus mainly on local issues, but will also address some central topics, because we believe it is important for people to know who they are voting for,” Filipche said.

The opposition party leader said that claims that SDSM, together with DUI, is preparing destabilization and chaos for the local elections are not true. “Such a scenario,” he said, “does not exist, and we aren’t even considering it.” According to Filipche, SDSM is focused on using democratic mechanisms against the government.

“We have been hearing these accusations from the Prime Minister for a long time now, that SDSM together with DUI and I don’t know who else is preparing some destabilization scenarios. None of that is true. If such a destabilization were going to happen, it would have happened by now, given how long he has been accusing us. It is simply something he needs because he has nothing to boast about, no good policies. You can see what is happening in the economy, there are divisions,” Filipche said in answer to a journalist’s question.

According to Filipche, VMRO-DPMNE’s promises from 2024 remain unfulfilled. “Better conditions for negotiations with Europe, but that did not happen. Albania and Montenegro have overtaken us, while standards in Macedonia stagnate,” he said.

Asked about a photograph showing him vacationing with former SDSM president Zoran Zaev on a yacht in Greece, while at the same time accusing others of lowering the standard of living, Filipche said he has every legitimacy and credibility to speak on the issue because he has dedicated his whole life to working for the citizens.

“First as a doctor with patients, and later as a minister when I fought for all citizens and for the standards of healthcare workers,” he said, pointing out that salaries for healthcare workers had been raised, and noting that he will continue to fight for the living standard of the citizens.

He accused VMRO-DPMNE of running a propaganda system against him for a long time, including claims that he owns a house in Nerezi, a gift jeep, a building, and an airline company in Dubai. He said these claims are not true, noting that he regrets that VMRO-DPMNE has developed such a system.

“I believe this is no longer just a political phenomenon, but a social one, created by people who aim to lower the level of political and public communication below the elementary level of civilization. They simply want to drag you into the mud and fight there, but I will not allow that. None of those things are true,” Filipche underscored.

The SDSM leader also said that he does not consult Zaev on political issues.

“Zoran Zaev is no longer involved in politics. My political decisions here are made together with the [party] leadership,” Filipche said at the press conference in SDSM’s HQ.

Photo: SDSM