Zoran Zaev has officially submitted his resignation at the Parliament of North Macedonia, something he warned to do since October 31 after his party the Social Democratic Union (SDSM) suffered a major defeat at the local elections.

A new government is set to be formed before mid-January that will be led by Dimitar Kovacevski, the new leader of SDSM.

Zaev claimed responsibility for his party’s loss against VMRO-DPMNE and offered to step down shortly after.

He delayed his resignation for around 2 months, while SDSM lost the parliamentary majority after the party that it was in a coalition with, Movement Besa, announced a break-up.

In order to avoid taking the country to snap elections, Zaev invited the Alternative, another ethnic-Albanian party, to enter into a coalition.

The Constitution stipulates that the new prime minister candidate must submit to the Assembly the names of his new cabinet, requiring 61 MPs to vote in favor.