Goce Ristov has entered the roster of candidates actively gathering signatures for the upcoming presidential race. The State Election Commission (SEC) has set a deadline of Friday for candidates to amass the required 10,000 signatures.

As of now, seven candidates have successfully secured their spots in the presidential elections, according to the latest data from the SEC. Stevo Pendarovski (SDSM) leads with 22,411 signatures, followed by Gordana Siljanovska (VMRO-DPMNE) with 28,029 signatures. Maksim Dimitrievski (ZNAM) has collected 11,602 signatures, Bujar Osmani (DUI) gathered 11,085, Stevcho Jakimovski (GROM) secured 11,093, Arben Taravari (Coalition Worth It) amassed 10,710, and Biljana Vankovska Cvetanovska (Levica) obtained 10,469.

Other candidates are currently in the process of collecting signatures. Mersiha Smailovikj (Bosniak Democratic Alliance) has garnered 1,684 signatures, Velo Markovski has 1,509, Gjorgji Manaskov has 453, Zorica Cvetkovska has 233, Gospodin Popovski has 133, and Tome Nikoloski is yet to accumulate any.

The signature collection process is underway across all SEC departments and offices in 34 municipalities, as well as at notaries public.

Prospective candidates must submit their bids to the SEC by midnight on March 19.