Justina Shiroka Pula was elected president with 81 votes in favor during an extraordinary session held in the final moments of the constitutional deadline for electing the head of state.
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Her opponent was PDK lawmaker Eliza Hoxha, while the proposal for Shiroka Pula came from Prime Minister Albin Kurti, who approached the PDK in the final hour of October 6.
The president was elected with the participation of lawmakers from the ruling majority and the PDK, the second-largest opposition party, but the presence in the chamber of representatives of the LDK, the third-largest opposition party, attracted particular attention.
Several lawmakers from the Democratic League of Kosovo took part in the vote. They had reached an agreement with the LVV on the candidacy of Bekim Sejdiu, but failed to secure the support of six other lawmakers within their own party.
Political analyst Milazim Maraj described the election of Justina Shiroka Pula as a positive conclusion following an extended period of political tensions and conflicts that followed the elections.
According to Maraj, despite recent developments, the election of the president prevented a new institutional crisis, warning that a continuation of the deadlock could have pushed the country into another cycle of tensions and political and economic damage.
However, the analyst questions whether the entire political crisis was necessary, attributing part of the responsibility to Albin Kurti, the leader of the Vetëvendosje Movement.
Maraj stresses that political ability is measured not only by intelligence, but also by wisdom and the ability to create a climate of cooperation—something that, in his view, did not happen during this process.
He also mentions the failure to nominate Kujtim Shala as deputy speaker of parliament and the initial rejection of the LDK’s candidate for president, describing this approach as part of a series of actions that damaged political trust between the parties.
Speaking about the LDK, Maraj says that accepting Bekim Sejdiu as a candidate for president demonstrated a willingness to compromise, but that the issue also caused internal divisions within the political entity.
He also recalls statements by several voices within the LDK that it would be better to remain in opposition than to become part of a government dependent on Albin Kurti.
Meanwhile, regarding the LVV, Maraj is critical of the party’s internal functioning, claiming that decision-making is concentrated around its leader.
Maraj also commented on the PDK’s role in recent parliamentary developments, saying that the party viewed the adoption of the law at second reading as a political success and as proof that it had achieved its demands in dealings with the government.
According to him, the LDK gained what everyone else gained and lost a tired offer, while stressing that the important thing is that a woman, an academic and even the chairwoman of the Kosovo Academy of Sciences was elected president.
Political analyst Nexhat Haziri criticized the way the presidential election process was conducted, assessing that from the outset it had been influenced by the political calculations of the Vetëvendosje Movement and by internal disputes within the LDK.
According to Haziri, disagreements and rivalry within the LDK were exploited politically to weaken the party and empower certain groups within it.
Focusing on Bekim Sejdiu’s candidacy, the analyst says that presenting it as the result of an agreement between the LVV and the LDK did not accurately reflect developments within the party.
Haziri assesses that the agreement also involved calculations aimed at empowering certain political figures within the LDK, specifically mentioning Lumir Abdixhiku and Vjosa Osmani.
According to him, Sejdiu’s candidacy could not be considered one that emerged from the LDK’s decision-making process, but rather the result of a political deal between the LVV and two figures from the party.
As for the election of Justina Shiroka Pula as president, Haziri says it resulted from an agreement between the LVV and the PDK, leaving the LDK outside a decisive political process.
In conclusion, Haziri assesses that the LDK is currently facing a difficult political situation, while the party’s internal elections, expected to be held next year, could be decisive for its future.
