The pre-election campaign for the local elections did not go without the use of religion and the religious feelings of citizens, in order to attract more votes in the elections. This is shown by the latest research "Religion in Political Campaigns" conducted by the Institute for Political Research-Skopje (IPIS), the internet portal Religija.mk and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS).
Almost every third respondent answered that religion was used or that it was used to some extent in the function of pre-election vote gathering. Although the percentage of respondents who believe that religion was used in the campaign for the last elections is still relatively high, from the comparative data with previous research, a trend of decreasing this process can be observed. Unlike the parties, which use religion in pre-election campaigns, similar to previous research, only for a relatively small part of the citizens the use of religion in the campaign had an influence on their choice of who they would vote for. A high 75% answered that religion did not play a role in their choice, while for 16% it had an influence.
The research shows that the highest use of religion in political campaigns, among the macedonian bloc, is noticeable in VMRO-DPMNE with an average score of 2.34 (5 being the highest for use), SDSM with 1.84 and the lowest use of religion is recorded in Levica with an average score of 1.74. Among albanian parties, a higher use of religion in election campaigns was measured, where DUI has an average score of 2.73, and VREDI 2.65. The overall score of citizens for the use of religion and religious feelings by the independent candidates in the election campaign of the last local elections is 1.9.
One of the most common forms of combining politics and religion, which was observed in the last local elections, is the request of some campaign participants for blessings from religious representatives. However, the survey shows that a huge number of citizens do not approve of such actions. 64.2% of respondents answered that such a request is unacceptable for them, and 21.1% view it positively.
Citizens are against the use of religion and religious symbols in political campaigns. This view is shared by 68.3% of respondents.
More than half of Macedonian citizens would vote for a politician with a different religion than their own, although for a large number of citizens the religion to which certain politicians belong still plays a decisive role in supporting a particular political option they represent.
However, the percentage of respondents who believe that religion has an influence on political processes in society remains high. 50% of respondents answered Yes and Somewhat Yes, although it should be noted that there is a certain decrease in these perceptions compared to previous research.
24.3% of respondents believe that religious communities favored a certain party in these local elections, while 33.9% did not recognize such a thing. To the additional question Which? for those who answered affirmatively, 27.4% believe that VMRO DPMNE was favored, 26.3% DUI, 21.2% VREDI and only 1.1% that SDSM was favored.
The survey was conducted after the local elections in November 2025. This survey included 1128 respondents, maintaining the general ratio in terms of basic demographic characteristics such as gender, age, profession and education. The stratification is consistent with the latest data from the State Statistical Office. The margin of error is between +/-3.2%.
