At the invitation of the authorities of the Republic of North Macedonia, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe deployed a mission to observe the local elections held on 19 October 2025 throughout the country. The Congress mission was led by Gobnait Ní Mhuimneacáin (Ireland, ILDG) and involved 15 Congress observers from 14 countries.
The deployment on the ground on election day was preceded by preparatory meetings on
17 and 18 October 2025 in Skopje with the President of the State Election Commission, the Secretary of State in Ministry of Local Self Government and the Deputy President of the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption. The Congress delegation further met media representatives, domestic and international observers, as well as candidates and representatives of various political parties. A briefing with the OSCE/ODHIR Election Observation Mission Core Team was organised together with the delegation from the European Parliament.
On election day, seven Congress teams were deployed to different areas across the country.
“We welcome the fact that election day was well-organised, overall,” said Gobnait Ní Mhuimneacáin, Head of Delegation from the Congress of the Council of Europe.
“However, the low number of women mayoral candidates and the lack of accessibility for voters with disabilities and older people remain serious concerns. The absence of local media, particularly outside the capital, is also a major issue, limiting coverage of local issues — which should be central to a local election campaign — and contributing to the prominence of national topics, further polarising the electoral environment.”
Reflecting on what Congress observers saw on the ground, Katrien Partyka (Belgium, EPP/CCE), Deputy-head of the Congress delegation said:
“Voting on election day was calm, orderly and peaceful. This is a positive backdrop for resolving outstanding issues affecting local democracy in North Macedonia. These include the overly-politicised environment and perception about corruption that erode public confidence in institutions that they should be able to trust. Tackling these is the interests of all people in North Macedonia.”
The Congress draft report and recommendation will be submitted for adoption at the 50th Congress session in March 2026.
Contact : Stéphanie Poirel, [email protected]
