Ivan Vinarov

This article traces the emergence and development of another major political crisis in the Republic of Northern Macedonia, as well as the options for overcoming it as a result of the parliamentary elections and the process offorming a new government. This is a continuous cycle, referred as “stability in instability”. Overcoming the crisis will not be enough, but rather will lead to another situation of “stability in instability”. Moreover, the pandemic caused by COVID–19 prolongs the crisis but does not play a fundamental role regarding the (in)stability of the political system in our southwestern neighbour.

This article presents the essence and main features of preferential voting (as a constituent part of the proportional election system) as well as the Bulgarian experience in introducing the preferential vote in electoral practice. Chronolog- ically has been followed the emergence of the pan-European electoral tradition in terms of the formation of the European Parliament – the institution called to ensure the representation of the citizens of the member-states at the level of the European Union. The aim of the analysis is to confirm the inevitable need for a vote with preferences as a necessary component of any proportional system, and in particular for the election of MEPs.