"It is unimaginable what kinds of pressure are suffering all the members of the SDP who were running for the forthcoming local elections," Oliver Ivanović said after the resignation of Dr Zoran Spasojević's candidature.

Commenting on Spasojević’s decision to withdraw his candidacy for the councillor in front of the CI SDP list for the upcoming local elections, Oliver Ivanović says that such a decision was influenced by pressure.

Representatives of the CI SDP and “Together for Zvečan” and candidates for mayors and North Mitrovica and Zvečan, Oliver Ivanović and Dragiša Milović announced that they filed complaints against unknown perpetrators for the pressures on candidates for councillors who withdrew their candidacies from these two lists, reports Kontakt plus radio.

The complaints have been filed with the Serbian prosecutor, the radio reports.

Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) Vice President Marko Đurić says that the upcoming local elections in Kosovo are of national importance, and that the state of Serbia supports only the Serbian List in the elections, reports Serbian media.

After Tatjana Ivaz and Dalibor Antić withdrew the candidacy for councillors in front of CI SDP Oliver Ivanović, Tomislav Dejanović from the CI "For Our Zvečan" led by Dragiša Milović also asked withdrawel of his candidacy in the upcoming local elections on October 22.

He, like the previous two candidates, publicly supported the Serbian List.

The Serbian List submitted its list for mayors and councillors for the upcoming local elections in Kosovo scheduled for 22 October. The candidate of the Serbian List for the mayor of the municipality of Gračanica/Graqanicë is Srđan Popović, the deputy in the previous convocation of the assembly.

Former Mayors - Bratislav Nikolić, Gradimir Mikić, Svetislav Ivanović, Stevan Vulović, Vučina Janković and Goran Rakić - were nominated for the municipalities of Štrpce/Shtërpcë, Ranilug/Ranillug, Novo Brdo/Novobërdë, Zubin Potok, Zvečan/Zveqan and North Mitrovica.

Political parties have one more day to submit their lists with the names of the candidates for municipal mayors and municipal assemblies for 22 October local elections.

However, in order to be certified, the political parties need to pay the fines set by the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel. So far, only the Serbian List has paid its fine, while the Democratic Party of Kosovo has made a partial payment. From the €348 thousand, political parties so far paid €47.817.

Registration of political entities for local elections in Kosovo, to be held on October 22, will expire at midnight tomorrow.

The Central Election Commission says that Serbian political subjects have not yet submitted their lists, but it is quite certain that each of them will be participating alone.

President of the Serbian List Goran Rakić claims that the recent parliamentary elections have shown that the Serbs in Kosovo "believe them the most".

Although the local election campaign has yet to start, the opposition Vetevendosje party has already named most of its candidates for mayoral seats.

Progressive Democratic Party (PDS) would make decision on how to participate in the forthcoming local elections, but “what is certain, PDS would have mayor candidates in some municipalities, while in others they would have lists of candidates for MA’s,” stated the leader of the PDS, Nenad Rasic to RTK 2.

Rasic also expressed hope that the situation, similar to those during the parliamentary elections when certain candidates revoke their participation, would not occur again.

Director of the Serbian Government Office for Kosovo, Marko Đurić had a meeting today in Belgrade with the representatives of the ten Serbian majority municipalities from Kosovo regarding the upcoming local elections in Kosovo and on “how significant it would be for the Srpska Lista to confirm and strengthen the political unity of Serbian people in those elections.”