English
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Aleksandar Nikoloski expects Stojancho Radicheski, the candidate of VMRO-DPMNE and the “Your Macedonia” coalition, to win the second round of the early mayoral elections in the Municipality of Brvenica, scheduled for November 1st. In an interview for the MRT program “360 Degrees,” Nikoloski announced a greater mobilization of voters and a higher turnout; he also anticipates support from other political parties, including SDSM.
The VMRO-DPMNE candidate noted that he achieved a better result in the first round compared to last year’s local elections, and he expects the margin to widen in the second round, now that only two candidates remain.
“I am convinced that we will win in the second round. Yesterday, we demonstrated that we have stronger support in Brvenica and that the people are behind us. We must not overlook the context in which these elections are taking place. Unfortunately, the previous mayor passed away suddenly. That is the reason we are holding these elections. To be frank, I expected other political entities to show respect regarding this. We are not heading to the polls because someone resigned or made such a decision, but rather for the worst possible reason imaginable,” Nikoloski pointed out. He pointed out that results vary across the settlements within the municipality, with the margin between candidates in some areas being around 50 votes. Nikoloski noted that this is an ethnically mixed municipality and that he expects a higher turnout in the second round.
“VMRO-DPMNE plus SDSM equals DUI plus VLEN. That is how it appears, but for the second round, I expect much greater mobilization, a higher turnout, and a convincing victory for us. That is what happened last year as well. If you look at this year’s results, you will see that our performance in the first round is better than last year’s. In the second round, given that only two candidates remain, it is natural for the figures to shift,” Nikoloski stated.
Regarding potential support from their coalition partner VLEN—following the coalition’s candidate congratulating his rival from DUI after the first-round results were announced—Nikoloski said that they would hold discussions, but added that he expects support from their coalition partner.
“We are a coalition government, so, naturally, we expect our coalition partner to support us.” “However, as I mentioned, we also expect the other political parties to support our candidate, because we believe that Stojancho Radicheski—known as ‘Choki’ in Brvenica—is the best choice to continue leading the municipality until the regular elections, for the reasons I stated earlier. Naturally, we will wait until November 1st,” said Nikoloski.