Parliament meets on Wednesday for constitutive session

2025-08-19 12:41:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The Members of the Assembly of Kosovo will gather on August 20, at 11:00, to continue the constitutive session of the legislature that emerged from the February elections.

The continuation of the session comes after the 30-day deadline for the constitution of the legislative body began on August 18.

This, after the Constitutional Court published the full judgment, through which it ordered the Assembly to elect the new Speaker of Parliament within 30 days through open voting, putting the same candidate on the ballot no more than three times.

The decision was welcomed by parties that were in opposition last term, but was criticized by the election winner, the Vetëvendosje Movement.

Zahir Çerkini, professor of Constitutional Law at the "Isa Boletini" University in Mitrovica, told Radio Free Europe that the verdict means that further delays in the constitution of the Assembly are not only a political issue, but also represent a violation of constitutional norms that guarantee the functioning of the state.

"Respecting the Court's judgments is not an option that political actors can choose or not, but a necessary obligation. Any action to the contrary would undermine the foundations of the rule of law and risk producing a deep institutional crisis," he told REL on August 18.

The judgment does not mention concrete consequences if the Assembly fails to respect the decision, but, according to Çerkin, "then we have a new constitutional situation that requires institutional clarification."

"In such a case, it is expected that the president or some other authorized entity will refer the matter back to the Constitutional Court for additional interpretation on further steps," he said.

"The idea that the country should automatically go to elections at this stage has no constitutional support. The Constitution provides for new elections only after the Assembly has been constituted and one of the constitutional circumstances specified for its dissolution is fulfilled," Çerkini added.

According to Çerkini, the Vetëvendosje Movement's candidate for parliamentary speaker Albulena Haxhiu may be nominated again for speaker of the Parliament.

"However, this must be done while respecting the limits and guidelines that the latest Constitutional Court judgment has already set."

How did the political impasse start?

The constitutive session began on April 15. However, it has not yet been concluded due to disagreements between political parties regarding the form of voting for the speaker of parliament.

After the Vetëvendosje Movement's candidate for parliamentary speaker, Albulena Haxhiu, failed to be elected to head the legislative body in six open votes, Dehari changed the agenda on May 1.

He then asked the Democratic Party, the Democratic League, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, and the Serbian List to each nominate a member for a commission that would oversee the secret ballot for the speaker of parliament.

This was opposed by the parties that were in opposition during the previous mandate, which refused to propose members for this Commission.

Initially, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo appealed to the Constitutional Court regarding the impasse. The court responded on June 26, saying that the vote should have been held according to previous practices. It gave the deputies 30 days to complete the constitution process, but this deadline was ignored.

Meanwhile, PDK and LDK submitted separate cases on the issue of voting for the speaker of parliament.

The Constitutional Court imposed a temporary measure from June 27 to August 8, prohibiting MPs from taking decisions and actions to constitute the Assembly.

On August 8, the Constitutional Court announced the decision on the two submitted cases - the full judgment of which was published on August 18 - in which it stated that the change in the agenda was a violation, obliging the Assembly to return to open voting.

None of the entities has won enough votes to form a majority on its own, and no political agreement has been reached.

The LVV of the incumbent Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, won 48 seats during the February 9 elections, and other parliamentary parties have refused to vote for its candidate for Speaker of the Assembly, whose appointment requires at least 61 votes.

While LVV insists that Albulena Haxhiu is a worthy candidate, some of the largest parliamentary parties, such as PDK, LDK, and AAK, exclude her as "divisive."

PDK came second with 24 seats, LDK third with 20, followed by Serbian List - the largest Serb party in Kosovo with 9, and the coalition between AAK and the Social Democratic Initiative, with 8.

Another 11 seats belong to minorities./ Rel