SDSM Splits Into a Voice and a List: "12:05" Platform Demands a Single Electoral District and Open Lists
Ivanovski: Filipče and his group have become a faction within the party, and the membership is on our side.
The internal crisis within opposition party SDSM has escalated after a dissident group, calling itself Platform "12:05" (after the exact time of their first meeting), publicly challenged the party's current leadership.
The platform is demanding three key reforms: a single electoral district instead of the current multiple districts, open candidate lists allowing voters to choose individual candidates directly, and changes to the party's leadership structure. Its leading figures include former SDSM vice president Igor Ivanovski, along with Nikola Kjurkčiev, Andrej Petrov, Emilijan Stankovikj, Gordan Georgiev, and sitting MP Slavjanka Petrovska.
Ivanovski claims Filipče's leadership represents an "anti-people government" in a silent coalition with ruling party VMRO-DPMNE, and that party membership stands with the dissidents. SDSM's leadership countered by accusing platform members of serving VMRO-DPMNE's interests, while the ruling party accused Filipče of spreading panic over SDSM's internal troubles.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · September 27, 2026
