Kosovo holds parliamentary elections today
Kosovo’s parliamentary elections will be held today.
Acting President Vjosa Osmani dissolved the Kosovo parliament and called for snap elections in December 2020 after the Constitutional Court ruled that current Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti was illegitimately voted into power.
Opinion polls predict that the nationalist Vetevendosje party will receive 40%-55% of the vote, possibly avoiding forming a coalition government. The party’s pick for prime minister, Albin Kurti, was recently barred from running by the Central Election Commission and the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel because he received a criminal sentence in the last three years. The Vetevendosje party plans to appeal the decision, citing Kurti’s unchallenged tenure as prime minister in early 2020.
Under Kurti’s leadership, the government has promised to prioritise domestic issues, increase job opportunities and fight high-level corruption, rather than pursue further dialogue with Serbia. Kurti has consistently opposed exchanging Kosovan territory for Serbian recognition, a factor hampering Kosovo’s European political and economic aspirations. Furthermore, EU countries have imposed a moratorium on the enlargement of the Union, limiting Kosovo’s opportunity to join in the short-term. Instead, Kurti may pursue a form of integration with Albania, potentially through a Greater Albanian Union, to consolidate Kosovo’s separation and gain protection from Serbia.
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