Zoran Zaev

Zaev became Prime Minister after his SDSM party formed a coalition with ethnic Albanian parties. He pledged to resolve the long-standing name dispute with Greece and pursue Euro-Atlantic integration.

Zaev signed the Prespa Agreement with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, changing the country's name to North Macedonia in exchange for Greece lifting its veto on NATO and EU accession. This resolved a 27-year dispute.

Zaev held a non-binding referendum on the Prespa Agreement, which was approved by 91% of voters, but turnout was only 37%. The low turnout weakened his mandate, but the agreement was ratified by parliament.

Following the Prespa Agreement, North Macedonia became the 30th member of NATO, fulfilling a key foreign policy goal. Zaev's government achieved this milestone despite domestic opposition.

Zaev resigned after his party suffered losses in local elections, citing the need for new leadership. His resignation came amid challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and EU accession delays.