Zoran Zaev decisively lost the local elections. SDSM lost almost all significant municipalities, and lost in Skopje, Ohrid, Bitola, Prilep, Stip, Veles, Gevgelija…, the conservative VMRO-DPMNE party said in a press release. Zaev announced that he will resign after the defeat but is now drumming up support from his coalition partners and party members in an attempt to prepare the ground to reverse his resignation.

Even after the brutal election irregularities, pressure and threats from the Government, the people sent a clear message of dissatisfaction, disappointment and defeated the policies of division and conflict. Zaevism as a system must fall. Zaev remains a dishonest loser in his defeat. He needs to keep his word for once. Instead he is using paid clients in a campaign he hopes will allow him to remain in power. His Government does not have credibility to lead the country, VMRO-DPMNE said.

Zaev gathered his coalition partners yesterday to get them to declare their support for keeping his Government in place and for reversing the resignation.