Arben Taravari from the Alliance of Albanians said that SDSM party leader Zoran Zaev was the only person who was completely unprepared to compromise during the meeting of party leaders earlier this week. Zaev demands that elections are held on June 21, even as other parties are warning that the still raging coronavirus epidemic will drive the turnout low to the point that the resulting Parliament will be illegitimate.

Zoran Zaev wanted elections on June 21 come what may, Taravari said during a TV debate.

Taravari said that the State Electoral Commission informed the political leaders that it needs at least 33 days to prepare the elections, and up to 50, but that Zaev insisted on elections 22 days after the state of emergency has been lifted by his loyalist, President Stevo Pendarovski.

Zaev’s SDSM party has apparently concluded that low turnout elections are in its best interest and is pressuring other parties to accept the vote to take place even as citizens are still scared of the spread of the virus. The opposition VMRO-DPMNE party proposed dates in the second half of August and the whole of September and the parties representing ethnic Albanian similarly proposed a wide number of dates, but SDSM insists on elections as soon as possible.