Balkan Leader Threatens Snap Vote as Battle Over Name Deal Rages

(Bloomberg) -- The Republic of Macedonia’s leader threatened to call snap elections next month if he fails to win support to change his country’s name after voters backed him in a referendum clouded by low turnout.

The conflicted outcome Sunday’s plebiscite sets the stage for a bruising battle ahead for Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, who’s trying to settle a 27-year-old row with Greece and open a path toward western integration. It also underscores the intensity of a struggle for sway in the continent’s most volatile region between the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on one side and on the other Russia, which opposes the further expansion of the military alliance into its former sphere of influence.

More than 9 out of 10 voters, or 91 percent, backed an agreement with Greece to change their Balkan state’s name to the Republic of North Macedonia, the Electoral Commission said Sunday with 96 percent of districts counted. Six percent were against. Voter turnout was seen at 37 percent. The referendum has only an advisory role and lawmakers aren’t obliged to adhere to its result.

“The ‘yes’ vote is bigger than any win of any political party in Macedonia’s newest history,” Zaev told supporters in Skopje, the capital. “Now is the time for lawmakers to follow the vote of the people to quicken processes for EU and NATO integration.”

Zaev’s ruling coalition lacks the two-thirds majority required to change the name in a constitutional amendment. That means he’ll have to win at least some backing from the opposition VMRO-DPMNE party, which rejects the change after overseeing an escalation in the rift with Greece before it lost power last year.

Read more here about ending the bitter dispute over the name ‘Macedonia’

“I expect VMRO-DPMNE’S lawmakers to respect the democratic will of the majority of citizens who voted,” Zaev said. “Otherwise there’s nothing else left -- we’ll have to use the other democratic instrument, which means immediate snap parliamentary elections.”

To make the necessary constitutional changes on time, Zaev said he could call for a snap election for end-November if he fails to find support. VMRO-DPMNE rejected the referendum as a failure, with party Chairman Hristijan Mickoski saying it had ruined the legitimacy of the government. The party trailed Zaev’s SDSM 17 percent to 21 percent in an August opinion poll published by the International Republican Institute.

Athens agreed to the name switch after blocking its neighbor’s accession into the western clubs, saying it misappropriated the appellation from the ancient kingdom of Macedonia, after which its own northern province is named. The Greek Foreign Ministry urged for “sobriety from all sides” after what it called a “contradictory” referendum result.

Boycott Hurts

Pending the successful conclusion of the deal, the EU has given a conditional date for the start of accession talks in June. Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said the “very significant ‘yes’ vote” signaled broad agreement to support the deal with Greece.

“I now expect all political leaders to respect this decision and take it forward with utmost responsibility and unity across party lines, in the interest of the country,” he tweeted.

The turnout was hurt by the boycott of some nationalist politicians. U.S. officials, including Defense Secretary James Mattis, have accused Russia of spending money and launching a misinformation campaign to scupper the ballot, and social media was flooded with appeals for voters to stay home. But the result may have given Zaev an advantage, said Damon Wilson, executive vice president at the Atlantic Council.

“Despite the low turnout, these half a million voters may be the highest number of voters that have supported anything in Macedonia recently,” he said. ”It’s up to the deputies to decide now, but Zaev raised a high stake by threatening with a snap vote. It’s a bold move.”

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