The Mayor of Kumanovo Maksim Dimitrievski, who was ejected from the SDSM party by Zoran Zaev over his independent re-election bid, called on the party to throw out some of Zaev’s most corrupt advisers. Zaev is announcing a resignation from both the Government and the party leadership position in light of the major local elections defeat, and Dimitrievski indicates that he will like to play a role in the post-Zaev SDSM.

My party fled from its own ideology. There are many in the SDSM leadership who never belonged to the party. The healthcare system was led by people from outside the party, Mila Carovska (education) and Venko Filipce (healthcare) were driven by lucrative motives, and they should be in the past. The citizens sent a message. It was not only local mayoral candidates who were defeated, but the policies at the central level, Dimitrievski said.

Dimitrievski now leads a city which had one of the strongest SDSM branches, and said that he received numerous messages of congratulations from inside SDSM, despite the rift during the elections.