SDSM and BESA Reach Agreement for Pre-Election Coalition

SDSM and BESA entered into pre-election coalition, signed by their respective leaders, Zoran Zaev and Bilal Kasami. This is the first pre-election coalition of parties from the Macedonian and Albanian blocs. Zaev and Kasami say the cooperation was created on the basis of principles, mostly due to the rule of law and European integration, and with it ethnic prejudice in politics are being eradicated. The two leaders say it is a winning coalition that will win at least 61 MP seats. The cooperation has been agreed upon, but the places on the lists are still being negotiated. “In the following period, while we work on the program, we will determine the election list spots, equal representation of the two genders, however we are still talking with our old coalition partners as well,” stated Zaev. Unofficially, Kasami will run in the sixth constituency, and BESA should receive at least four more winning positions in the other constituencies. Zaev with a message to his current partner DUI – that he will not be able to enter the government coalition through blackmail. DUI, in turn, reply that such Macedonian-Albanian coalitions only serve to damage the Albanian voters. VMRO-DPMNE says that the coalition between SDSM and BESA is a coalition for the continuation of criminal rule. The coalition between Zaev and Kasami is connection of people without clear standpoints, according to Mickoski’s party.