Macedonia's political parties wrapped up late Friday their campaigning for snap elections this weekend, promising voters a fast pace of reforms that would lead the tiny Balkan country into the European Union.

"We promise to continue our government reforms which will bring economic and social recovery," said incumbent Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski of ruling conservative VMRO-DPMNE at the final rally in the capital Skopje.

Several thousand supporters, many bussed in from other towns in Macedonia, cheered the party slogan "Reforms will win," waving party and country flags.

"European Macedonia will win," Gruevski told the applauding crowd.

Gruevski's main rival Branko Crvenkovski's leftist SDSM party rallied in the northern town of Kumanovo, accusing the government of a "catastrophic situation" in the country with a population of just over two million, with an unemployment rate of 30 percent.

"Macedonia can not afford mistakes any more, I want to see Macedonia's flag in Brussels," Crvenkovski told the crowd.

Skopje has gained the status of an EU candidate since 2005 but the negotiations that would lead to membership have yet to start due to a conflict with Athens which dates back to Macedonia's independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991.

Greece, which has a northern province called Macedonia, says the use of the same name by its neighbour implies a claim on Greek territory.

So far UN-led negotiations to solve the more than 19-year-long name row have been fruitless.

While the opposition blames Gruevski for the lack of progress on the name issue it has not actually proposed any solution other than to promise, as the government has done, that any new name would be put to voters in a referendum.

Disappointed with a slow pace of economic reforms and disillusioned with ongoing political bickering, many Macedonians say they will abstain from the polls. A recent survey showed that 47.1 percent of voters were still undecided.

Some 1.8 million voters will elect deputies for the 123-seat parliament and for the first time, some 7,000 Macedonians living abroad will have a chance to cast their ballot.

The polls will be monitored by some 3,500 local and 330 international observers. Preliminary results are expected on Monday.