Stevo Pendarovski

Stevo Pendarovski
Стево Пендаровски
Pendarovski in 2023
5th President of North Macedonia
In office
12 May 2019 – 12 May 2024
Prime MinisterZoran Zaev
Oliver Spasovski
Zoran Zaev
Dimitar Kovačevski
Talat Xhaferi
Preceded byGjorge Ivanov
Succeeded byGordana Siljanovska-Davkova
Personal details
Born (1963-04-03) 3 April 1963 (age 61)
Skopje, PR Macedonia, SFR Yugoslavia (modern North Macedonia)
Political partySocial Democratic Union
SpouseElizabeta Gjorgievska
Children1
Alma materSs. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje

Stevo Pendarovski (Macedonian: Стево Пендаровски, pronounced ['stɛvɔ pɛn'darɔfski]; born 3 April 1963) is a Macedonian politician who served as the 5th President of North Macedonia from 2019 to 2024.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Stevo Pendarovski was born on 3 April 1963 in Skopje. His family originates from Galičnik.[4] He grew up in post-earthquake Skopje. His parents were teachers.[5] Pendarovski started his elementary studies at the then-Dositej Obradovikj School in Skopje (current-day Panajot Ginovski School) while he finished his secondary studies at the Cvetan Dimov gymnasium.[6][7]

Pendarovski earned a Bachelor of Laws degree from Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje in 1987, later earning his MA and Ph.D. degrees in Political Science from the same university.[8]

Political career

As a law graduate, Pendarovski first worked as a trainee in a law office in Skopje, but later left and got a job at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, where he worked as a security analyst.[9] In 1998, he was appointed head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs' Analysis and Research Administration and a spokesman for the ministry, in the capacity of Deputy Minister of Public Relations.[8] He was a spokesman for the Ministry of Internal Affairs during the country's 2001 armed conflict.[10]

In 2001, Pendarovski joined the cabinet of President Boris Trajkovski, where he worked as a national security advisor. President Trajkovski and eight other people, including three members of his cabinet, died in a plane crash in Bosnia and Herzegovina on 26 February 2004. When the plane crash happened, Pendarovski was in Dublin as a representative of President Trajkovski in the state delegation that was due to submit the country's application for EU membership that day, which was subsequently postponed.[11]

For a short period, from 2004 to 2005, Pendarovski headed the State Election Commission. In 2005, he returned to the presidential cabinet, this time as an advisor to President Branko Crvenkovski on national security and later on foreign policy.[8] Pendarovski left the presidential cabinet in 2009, when Crvenkovski ended his presidency.

Pendarovski began teaching at the University American College in Skopje in 2008. Some of the areas he has taught and researched are: international relations, intelligence and national security, geopolitics, globalization, US foreign policy, EU foreign and security policy, small states in international relations and others.[10]

On 4 March 2014, Pendarovski was elected by the main opposition party in Macedonia, the Social Democratic Union, as its candidate for the April 2014 presidential election.[12]

Presidency (2019–2024)

Pendarovski with then Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin in Skopje on 20 June 2022
Pendarovski with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen in Skopje on 29 October 2023

Pendarovski ran in the 2019 election as a presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Union and the Democratic Union for Integration.[13][14] He went on to win 436,212 votes in the second round of the presidential election, 51.66% of the votes cast.[15]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pendarovski introduced the nation's first ever state of emergency to contain the coronavirus, a move that paved the way for a 2020 parliamentary election.[16]

In February 2022, Pendarovski was seen walking with Embla Ademi, an 11-year-old girl with Down syndrome, to her elementary school in Gostivar after he heard she was being bullied.[17][18]

Personal life

Pendarovski is married to Elizabeta Gjorgievska, a medical doctor who works at the Clinic for Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry and a professor at the Faculty of Dentistry in Skopje. They have one child, named Ognen.[19]

Honours and awards

References

  1. ^ "Pendarovski sworn in as new North Macedonia president". The Republic. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  2. ^ Abellan Matamoros, Cristina (12 May 2019). "North Macedonia's new president Stevo Pendarovski takes office". EuroNews. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  3. ^ "Pendarovski sworn in as new North Macedonia president". Associated Press. 12 May 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2022 – via The Seattle Times.
  4. ^ "President Pendarovski attended and addressed the traditional Galičnik Wedding event". pretsedatel.mk. 14 July 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2021. I am honored and pleased to be the patron of this year's Galičnik Wedding, not only as President, but also as a man who is originally from this village and this region.
  5. ^ "Стево Пендаровски приватно: Благороден и необично духовит татко" (in Macedonian). 6 April 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  6. ^ Пендаровски: Добивав купови љубовни писма, ама жена ми знае дека не играм на дупло [Pendarovski: I Was Receiving a Ton of Love Letters, But My Wife Knows that I Never Play Double]. Reporter MK (in Macedonian). 5 April 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  7. ^ "President Pendarovski visits first graders in the elementary school "Panajot Ginovski"". Pretsedatel.mk. 3 September 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  8. ^ a b c "Biography of the president". pretsedatel.mk. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  9. ^ Slavica Filipovska (14 May 2019). "Пендаровски низ очите на соработниците: Несуден адвокат, тврдоглав галичанец, прагматичен политичар". 360 stepeni (in Macedonian). Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  10. ^ a b Ljubomir Kostovski (4 March 2019). "Стево Пендаровски: Преку два претседателски кабинета до бирото на шефот на државата со свое име". vistinomer.mk (in Macedonian). Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  11. ^ "Пендаровски: Со ниедна партија не сум разговарал за кандидатура за претседател!". faktor.mk (in Macedonian). 3 March 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Pendarovski, official presidential nominee of the Macedonian opposition". Independent Balkan Agency. 3 May 2014. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  13. ^ "Стево Пендаровски е консензуален претседателски кандидат на СДСМ и ДУИ" [Stevo Pendarovski is a consensual presidential candidate of SDSM and DUI]. Точка (in Macedonian). 1 March 2019. Archived from the original on 4 May 2020.
  14. ^ Matamoros, Cristina Abellan (12 May 2019). "North Macedonia's new president Stevo Pendarovski takes office". euronews. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  15. ^ "Биографија на новиот претседател Стево Пендаровски" [Biography of the new President Stevo Pendarovski]. А1он (in Macedonian). 12 May 2019. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  16. ^ "North Macedonia lifts state of emergency, paving way for election". Reuters. 12 June 2020.
  17. ^ Goodwin, Allegra (12 February 2022). "An 11-year-old girl with Down syndrome was being bullied. So her country's president walked her to school". CTVNews. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  18. ^ Allegra Goodwin (11 February 2022). "North Macedonia President walks bullied 11-year-old girl to school". CNN. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  19. ^ "Добрината е единственото што останува по нас: Интервју со Елизабета Ѓоргиевска, сопруга на Претседателот Стево Пендаровски" [Goodness is the only thing left after us: Interview with Elizabeta Gjorgievska, wife of President Stevo Pendarovski]. Женски Магазин (in Macedonian). Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  20. ^ "President Pendarovski in Warsaw awarded with the Order of the White Eagle, President Duda with the "September 8" Order". pretsedatel.mk. 24 October 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2023.
Political offices
Preceded by President of North Macedonia
2019–2024 		Succeeded by