At stake in this election:

• 123 seats in the Assembly of Macedonia

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Gjorge IVANOV
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Nikola GRUEVSKI
• Assembly: Macedonia has a unicameral Assembly (Sobranie) with 123 seats

Description of electoral system:

• In the Assembly (Sobranie), 120 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 4-year terms and 3 members are reserved for the diaspora community to serve 4-year terms.[1]

Election Note:

• Although parliamentary elections were not due until 2015, the Albanian junior coalition partner Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) refused to support the ruling VMRO-DPMNE’s candidate for President, incumbent Gjorge IVANOV, and the government was dissolved. The last parliamentary election was held on June 5, 2011. The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE) received 438,138 votes (38.98%) and won 56 seats, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) received 368,496 votes (32.78%) and won 42 seats, and the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) received 115,092 votes (10.24%) and won 15 seats. Although the VMRO-DPMNE lost 7 seats and the SDSM gained 18, the VMRO-DPMNE still won a plurality of seats and was able to form a new government. Nikola GRUEVSKI remained Prime Minister.

Main candidates in the election:[2]

• Social Democratic Union of Macedonia / Социјалдемократски сојуз на Македонија (SDSM)[3]
  • Leader: Zoran ZAEV
  • Seats won in last election: 42
• Democratic  Party of Albanians / Partia Demokratike Shqiptare (DPA)
  • Leader: Menduh THAÇI
  • Seats won in last election: 8
• Dignity / Достоинство За Македонија
  • Leader: Stojanche ANGELOV
  • Seats won in last election: New Party
• Democratic Union for Integration / Bashkimi Demokratik për Integrim (BDI) / Демократска унија за интеграција (DUI)
  • Leader: Ali AHMETI
  • Seats won in last election: 15
• Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity Coalition / Внатрешна македонска револуционерна организација – Демократска партија за македонско национално единство (VMRO-DPMNE)[4]
  • Leader: Nikola GRUEVSKI
  • Seats won in last election: 56
• National Democratic Party of Macedonia / Национална демократска партија (NDP)
  • Leader: Gikten HAZIRI
  • Seats won in last election: 0
• Popular Movement for Macedonia / Народно Движење На Македонија (NDM)
  • Leader: Janko BACEV
  • Seats won in last election: 0
• Citizen Option for Macedonia / Граѓанин опција за Македонија (GROM)
  • Leader: Stevco JAKIMOVSKI
  • Seats won in last election: N/A[5]
• Coalition for a Positive Macedonia / Коалиција За Позитвна Македонја[6]
  • Leader: Vlado BUCKOVSKI
  • Seats won in last election: New Party
• Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – People’s Party / Внатрешна Македонска Револуционерна Организација-Народна Партија (VMRO-NP)
  • Leader: Ljubčo GEORGIEVSKI
  • Seats won in last election: 0
• Social Democratic Party of Macedonia / Социјал Демократска партија на Македонија (SDPM)
  • Leadere: Ljiljana IVANOVSKA
  • Seats won in last election: 0
• Party for Economic Change 21 / Партија за економски промени 21 (PEP 21)
  • Leader: Biljana JOVANOVSKA
  • Seats won in last election: New Party
• Party for Democratic Prosperity / Партија за демократски просперитет (PDP)
  • Leader: Abdyladi VEJSELI
  • Seats won in last election: 0
• Party for European Future / Партија за Европска Иднина
  • Leader: Fijat CANOSKI
  • Seats won in last election: 0

Population and Voter Registration:

• Population: 2,075,625 (2014)
• Registered Voters: 1,779,572 (April 2014)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 1,042,233 (2014)

·         Is Macedonia a signatory to CEDAW: N/A

·         Has Macedonia ratified CEDAW: Yes, succesion (18 January 1994)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 34 (following the 2011 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 81 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Medium (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Macedonia a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Macedonia ratified CRPD: Yes (29 December 2011)

·         Population with a disability: 311,343 (est.)