Three months on from electing a new President, Montenegrins will be casting ballots for a new parliament on Sunday. It will be the first parliamentary vote since the 30-year rule of Milo Djukanovic ended in March.

Voters are hopeful that the new government can get them on track to economic and infrastructure reforms as well as the ultimate goal of EU membership.

The man the polls say will most likely be the next Prime Minister of Montenegro is Milojko Spajic, leader of Europe Now.

Europe Now is also keen to stop the drain of educated Montenegrins leaving the country for better jobs and, as the name suggests, membership of the European Union is a top priority.

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It's not all gone Spajic's way, though. He's campaigned vocally on a need to cut out corruption in politics, only to spend the final few hours before the vote fending off questions over past association and financial relationships with a Korean cryptocurrency mogul who is being sought by Interpol. Spajic has denied any financial impropriety took place.

For 30 years, Montenegro was governed by the Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS. That came to an end in March when Europe Now's Jakov Milatovic won the presidential race.

The DPS candidate for Prime Minister is Danijel Zivkovic. He is second in the polls going into the vote and says an end to the stagnation from that upheaval is necessary.

"Victory in the upcoming elections is of utmost importance. It is crucial to form a stable, European-oriented, and reform-minded government that can steer Montenegro out of its current impasse and set it back on the right track."

In previous votes, Montenegro has found itself driven between those who identify as Montenegrin and those who identify as Serbian. Not so this time around. Party platforms have set out the importance of ties with Belgrade, but also ties to Brussels. Eighty percent of the population want to see Montenegro become an EU member state. 

The ongoing conflict in Ukraine means that has slipped from the headlines in EU capitals, but Srdan Kosovic, Chief Editor of Montenegrin newspaper Vijesti feels that may change before too long.

He said, "I think that the Ukraine crisis has potentially opened the door for Montenegro to join the European Union, at least at one point, because essentially now what we are seeing, the messages coming from the European Union about the possible ascension of Ukraine and Moldova brings it to one simple conclusion. It's a political decision more than anything else. I think it's essentially the question of internal affairs within the European Union."

Montenegro is one of Europe's smallest nations with a population of around 600,000 about the same as Leipzig or Glasgow. Size could prove to be an advantage if a new government is to push through a bid to join the EU. 

First, the challenge will be for whoever wins on Sunday to form a coalition that can stick together long enough to make a credible bid for membership.

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