Citizens of North Macedonia voted on Saturday, November 2, in the second round of local elections to elect mayors in 33 municipalities, including the capital, Skopje.

According to the State Election Commission (SEC), the voting process took place peacefully, without any reported incidents. Polling stations opened at 7:00 a.m. and closed at 7:00 p.m., while voter turnout was around 45 percent out of more than one million eligible voters.

In Skopje, the mayoral race was between Orce Gjorgievski of VMRO-DPMNE, currently mayor of the Kisela Voda municipality, and Amar Meçinoviq, a former MP from the Left party (Levica). More than 474,000 residents of the capital had the right to decide who would succeed Danela Arsovska, the independent mayor previously supported by VMRO-DPMNE. In the first round, the difference between the two candidates was 61,000 votes, with Gjorgievski receiving 91,000 and Meçinoviq 30,000 votes.

In 16 other municipalities, the race took place between the ruling VMRO-DPMNE and the opposition Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM). According to analysts, these contests are expected to serve as an indicator of SDSM’s current political strength, as the party won only three municipalities in the first round, compared to 33 won by VMRO-DPMNE.

The most closely watched municipalities in this runoff included Centar and Karpoš in Skopje, as well as Kërçovë (Kičevo), Tetovë (Tetovo), Strugë (Struga), and Koçan (Kočani), where the votes of candidates eliminated in the first round were expected to play a decisive role in the final outcome.