(ANSA) - Skopje - Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia vote on local election, a strong test for the left-wing government, lead by Zoran Zaev, five months after it came to power amid an acute political crisis following a decade of conservative rule. The 3.480 polling stations are opened since 7am and will close at 7pm

The first round of the vote is scheduled for Sunday, with over 1.8 million registered voters choosing mayors and members of local councils in the capital, Skopje, and another 80 municipalities. The re-run is on October 29. Opinion polls show a slight advantage for the governing Social Democrats, particularly in Skopje where its candidate mayor is 2.6 percent ahead of the conservative incumbent.

The conservative VMRO-DPMNE main opposition party is seeking to defend its dominance on a local level. They won 56 of 81 municipalities in the last elections in 2013, when the Social Democrats won four.

In the country live an albanian minority (25% of 2 millions of inhabitants). The challenge is between the outgoing mayor of Skopje, right-wing Koce Trajanovski and Petre Shilegov, socialdemocrat. (ANSA).