THE REPUBLIC OF Macedonia’s 2016 THE REPUBLIC OF PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS MacedOnia’s HANDBOOK 2016 ParliaMentary SECOND UPDATED EDITION electiOns HandbOOk Konrad Adenauer secOnd uPdated editiOn Stiftung Office in Macedonia Risto Ravanovski 8 1000 Skopje http://www.kas.de/mazedonien/mk www.idscs.org.mk Tel: +389 (2) 3217 075 Fax: +389 (2) 3217 076 POLITICS Е-mail: [email protected] Impressum Title: The Republic of Macedonia’s 2016 Parliamentary Elections THE REPUBLIC OF Handbook Macedonia’s 2016 Publisher: The Konrad Adenauer Stiftung in the Republic of Macedonia PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS Institute for Democracy “Societas Civilis” – Skopje HANDBOOK Author: Hristina Veljanova Hristina Veljanova Coordination: Davor Pasoski Johannes D. Rey Translation: Perica Sardzoski Proofreading: Haven Hightower Design and preparation: Vinsent Grafika The publication can be downloaded for free at: http://www.kas.de/mazedonien/mk http://www.idscs.org.mk Note: The stances exposed in this publication do not necessarily represent the positions of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and the Institute for Democracy “Societas Civilis” – Skopje, but are personal views of the author. Contents: Democratic Union for Integration 68 1. Introduction to the 2016 Parliamentary Elections 6 Social Democratic Union of Macedonia 71 Preparations for snap parliamentary elections 12 Recent changes to the electoral legislation 14 Coalition for CHANGES and JUSTICE - THIRD BLOCK (Democratic Union, FRODEM, DEMOS and MORO-RP) 76 Party for Democratic Prosperity 77 2. History of the Parliamentary Elections in Macedonia (1990 - 2014) 18 Coalition “Alliance for the Albanians” 1990 parliamentary elections 19 (DR-DPA, Uniteti, NDP) 78 1994 parliamentary elections 21 Liberal Party 79 1998 parliamentary elections 23 Coalition VMRO for Macedonia 80 2002 parliamentary elections 24 Movement BESA 81 2006 parliamentary elections 26 Levica 82 2008 parliamentary elections 28 6. Early parliamentary elections in the republic of 2011 parliamentary elections 30 macedonia 2016 - results, campaign, findings 84 2014 parliamentary elections 32 Introduction 85 Turnout at parliamentary elections (1990 – 2014) 35 Election Campaign 86 Election Campaign Financing 93 3. The Electoral System for Parliamentary Media 97 Elections in Macedonia 36 Results from the 2016 snap parliamentary elections 110 Electoral bodies 39 Protection of the right to vote 113 Active and passive electoral right, procedure for Evaluation of the elections by the observers 116 submittal of candidacies 41 Evaluation of the elections by the political parties 121 Limitations for the current state officials 43 Conclusions 124 Election campaign 45 The role of public media 47 7. Election Archive of Elections in Macedonia Monitoring the elections 49 from 1990 to date 130 4. Electoral Units 52 8. References 134 5. Overview of Participants in the Snap Parliamentary Elections of 2016 58 VMRO-DPMNE 60 Democratic Party of Albanians 65 INTRODUCTION TO THE 2016 PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS Since the Republic of Macedonia gained its independence in 1991 from the former Yugoslavia, the country has held eight parliamentary elections. The next elections are scheduled for 11 December 2016 and will be the fourth consecutive snap elections held in the country. At its 125th sitting on 17 October 2016, the Assembly unanimously adopted a decision for its dissolution, paving the way for the early elections on 11 December. The following day, the president of the Assembly, Trajko Veljanoski, announced the elections within his constitutional and legal INTRODUCTION competences.1 These snap parliamentary elections are to be held in six electoral units (ElU) within the Republic of Macedonia and one electoral TO THE 2016 unit (ElU 7) encompassing Macedonian citizens living abroad. Voting PARLIAMENTARY in EU 7 will occur in diplomatic and consular missions (DCM) of the Republic of Macedonia on 10 December 2016. ELECTIONS These elections have been preceded by a turbulent and dynamic period full of political upheaval and events. A political crisis that had been developing in Macedonia over the last several years culminated in 2015 with revelations regarding the “wiretapping scandal.”2 This was the basis for several events and massive protests that contributed to the destabilization of an already sensitive political situation. The signing of the Przino Agreement3 on 2 June and the Protocol on 15 July 2015 were two significant steps towards resolving the political 1 Decision on announcement of snap elections for MPs in the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia. The Decision has been taken over from the site of the State Election Commission (SEC). Accessed 7 November 2016: http://www.sec.mk/predvremeni- izbori-za-pratenici-2016/ 2 In February 2015 the largest opposition party, SDSM, began to publish wiretapped conversations from the past few years (in the public known as "bombs") which allegedly indicated the involvement of senior government officials and public servants in election fraud, corruption, abuse of power, and pressure on the media. The president of SDSM, Zoran Zaev, alleged that more than 20,000 citizens had been illegally wiretapped. On 18 November 2016, the Special Public Prosecution announced they have material and evidence indicating that from 2008-2015, at least 5827 phone numbers had been directly tapped. For more information see: www.jonsk.mk/2016/11/18/изјава-од-прес-конференција (last visit: 22 November 2016). 3 Przino Agreement. Accessed 7 November 2016: http://ec.europa.eu/enlargement/ news_corner/news/news-files/20150619_agreement.pdf and Protocol. Accessed 7 November 2016: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_STATEMENT-15-5372_en.htm 6 The Republic of Macedonia’s 2016 Parliamentary Elections Handbook 7 crisis.4 The Agreement was signed by the four largest political parties the Assembly adopted the request of DUI to postpone the dissolution – Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party of the Assembly and the president of the Assembly, Trajko Veljanovski, for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE), the Social Democratic officially rescheduled the elections on 5 June 2016.8 Union of Macedonia (SDSM), Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), and the Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA) as a result of the mediation Although the new date was meant to give additional time to overcome of representatives of the European Commission, the European the existing challenges, the events that followed further hampered the Parliament and the USA. The Agreement provided for snap elections political atmosphere. On 9 April, before the official announcement of on 24 April 2016 and the events leading up to these elections. As the elections, SDSM and 17 minor political parties signed the Platform per the Agreement, a transitional government was established on 11 for Democratic Macedonia highlighting necessary preconditions for November 2015 and the then current Prime Minster, Nikola Gruevski, regular, fair and democratic elections and also announced a boycott of resigned on 15 January 2015. The secretary general of VMRO-DPMNE, the elections.9 Several days later, President Gjorgje Ivanov pardoned10 Emil Dimitriev, became the interim Prime Minister and he was to lead 56 individuals implicated in the wiretapping scandal, including high the Government for the hundred days leading up to the scheduled level politicians from the governing and opposition parties implicated in elections on 24 April. In January 2016, SDSM announced it would the wiretapping scandal. The decision sparked a series of protests and not participate in the snap parliamentary elections. SDSM stated that counter-protests over the following period. One group of protesters conditions of the Przino Agreement had not been fulfilled, specifically organized under the initiative „Protestiram“ demanded the resignation that the Voters’ list had not been cleaned up and media reforms had not of the President and postponement of elections, while others united been fully implemented.5 Under the Przino Agreement, the EU and US by GDOM (Citizen Movement for Defense of Macedonia) supported the ambassadors designated 20 February as the deadline to assess to what position of the government and the 5 June elections. In the aftermath, extent the conditions had been met for holding credible elections on 24 the two major political parties and signatories to the Przino Agreement April.6 The conditions included cleaning up the voters’ list, implementing still differed in their attitude concerning the elections scheduled for 5 media reforms and separating the state from party activities. After June 2016. VMRO-DPMNE retained the view that early elections were assessment on the deadline, the EU and US ambassadors in Macedonia the key to ending the prolonged political crisis. On the other hand, SDSM went public with a position that although certain progress had been believed it was necessary to fully implement the Przino Agreement achieved, there were no conditions for holding credible elections.7 As as the only guarantee for fair and credible elections and retained its a result, the elections were postponed and the decision which had position to boycott the elections. The two signatories DUI and DPA, dissolved the Assembly on 18 January was reversed. On 23 February, issued a position that only inclusive elections with the participation 4 The Przino Agreement and Protocol foresee a large package of measures to resolve the political crisis, among them the appointment of a new composition of 8 With 83 votes in favor