Last year was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Republic of North Macedonia, too, succumbed to it. The crisis influenced many social and political events, which resulted in the revision of certain pieces of legislation, as well as their temporary suspension in order to enable the country to operate normally.

These early parliamentary elections were specific in terms of many elements which were linked by a cause-effect relationship not only because of the Coronavirus crisis, but because of the system itself, which was discussed in the course of 2020. The fact that different institutions and political constituents could interpret the legal layout in various ways, coupled with the legal vagueness, resulted in delays of the electoral process itself.

In the entire process, apart from the executive and legislative powers, a key role was also played by the independent bodies, such as the State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (hereinafter: SCPC), which are in charge of preventing illegal activities in politics and of implementing the electoral process.

Read the analysis here.