There is no new president / Kosovo goes to elections

2026-04-29 07:21:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Following the failure to elect the country's new president, Kosovo will hold new elections, which, according to the latest ruling of the Constitutional Court, must be held within 45 days.

Since the evening of April 27, the deputies of the parliamentary majority attempted to elect a new president, but the opposition parties boycotted the session's proceedings, after talks with the ruling party, the Vetevendosje Movement, failed and no agreement was reached on the president.

On April 27, LVV withdrew its first two candidates, Glauk Konjufca and Fatmire Mulhaxha Kollçaku, and then less than an hour later nominated Feride Rushiti and Hatixhe Hoxha.

Amid accusations of a "constitutional coup" because on April 27, the LVV held a round of voting for Rushit and Hoxha, clashes between the LVV and opposition parties continued throughout April 28.

The opposition also opposed the new candidacies and did not participate in any session for the president, neither on April 27 nor on Tuesday.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo, and also the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement, Albin Kurti, during the evening of April 28 asked the Democratic League of Kosovo to bring 15 signatures and a name for a presidential candidate, to run against his candidate, Feride Rushiti.

He said he would complete the signatures, after the other candidate, Hatixhe Hoxha, agreed to withdraw. The LDK said it had 15 signatures for its candidate – without naming him – but said Prime Minister Albin Kurti was looking for a counter-candidate to form a quorum so that Rushiti could be elected president.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti, also the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement (LVV), has stated that he has made efforts to reach an agreement with opposition parties, but without result.

The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) has sought to nominate its own candidate for president, while it has been criticized by the LVV for a lack of transparency.

The Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), on the other hand, has opposed the idea of ??one party - in this case LVV - controlling the three main institutions of the state: the Government, the Assembly and the Presidency.

Kurti has said that he offered the LDK a seat in the government or the position of speaker of parliament, but the offer was rejected. A similar offer was made to the PDK, but its leader, Bedri Hamza, described it as frivolous, saying that there had been no official invitation for a meeting.

Kurti then asked PDK and LDK to propose three non-partisan names for president, offering the support of LVV, but the opposition rejected this idea as well, describing it as frivolous and unacceptable.

The April 28 deadline came after on March 5, the LVV began the session to vote on Konjufca and Kollçak, but interrupted it due to lack of a quorum.

The following day, former President Vjosa Osmani issued a decree calling for new elections. However, the decision was referred to the Constitutional Court by the Kosovo Government. The Constitutional Court said that MPs had 34 days – until April 28 – to elect a successor to Osmani.

Osmani completed his five-year term on April 4, and Parliament Speaker Albulena Haxhiu, according to the Constitution, took over the position of acting president.

Kurti then held several meetings with the leader of the PDK, Bedri Hamza, and the leader of the LDK, Lumir Abdixhiku, but they did not lead to any agreement.

According to the Constitution, the president of Kosovo is elected with two-thirds of the votes in the first two rounds or with 61 votes in the third round, but 80 deputies are needed in the hall for the session to be held. /REL