In a TV interview, VMRO-DPMNE Secretary General Igor Janusev said that it was Prime Minister Zoran Zaev who avoided an opportunity to have the early general elections held in January 2020. Janusev was attending the meeting of party leaders last weekend and responded to claims from the side of Zaev and his SDSM party that they wanted the elections to be held as soon as possible.

Let’s see the transcripts if there is any doubt. What happened at the meeting was that Hristijan Mickoski told Zoran Zaev that the law is clear and a technical government needs to be set up for a period of 100 days. The deadlines to dismiss the Parliament were also clear, so we offered to vote to dissolve the Parliament immediately, form a technical government and count up for a 100 days and then hold the elections. Zaev retreated and refused the proposal, Janusev said.

Zaev’s camp said that they offered a vote as early as November or December. This would’ve violated the 100 days rule which Zaev insisted on in 2016, and then abused to keep his represenatitves in the VMRO-DPMNE led for as long as possible. Under the rule, Zaev is supposed to resign 100 days before the elections, his SDSM party should nominate a new interim Prime Minister, and the opposition will nominate interim minister in several key departments, including the Interior Ministry. The party leaders ultimately decided that Zaev will resign on January 3rd, and the elections will be held on April 12th.