Deadline for electing Kosovo’s president ends today; if voting fails, the country will go to elections

Today, October 6, marks the end of the 60-day constitutional deadline for electing the President of the Republic of Kosovo. According to the decision of the Constitutional Court, the deadline began on August 8, as the deadline for constituting the Assembly had expired on that date, and must conclude by the end of today.

Before this deadline expires, the Assembly must elect the head of state. If the president is not elected, the Assembly is automatically dissolved and Kosovo will hold new parliamentary elections.

According to the Constitutional Court’s determination, the new elections must be held within 45 days of the Assembly’s dissolution. If the institution is dissolved today, the elections could be held no later than November 15.

The issue of electing the president has dominated political developments in recent weeks, but the parties have failed to secure an agreement on a candidate and the votes needed.

The Constitutional Court’s decision came after requests from PDK lawmakers concerning the constitution of the Assembly and the formation of the government.

The court determined that the deadline for constituting the Assembly had expired on August 8 and that the 60-day deadline for electing the president began to run from that date.

After the June 7 elections, the Assembly’s constitutive session began on August 6 but was interrupted twice. Albin Kurti did not propose a candidate for speaker of the Assembly, arguing that an agreement on electing the president had to be reached beforehand.

On August 8, when the constitutional deadline for constituting the Assembly expired, session chair Avni Dehari interrupted the process again. The Vetëvendosje Movement insisted that the session should not continue without a prior agreement on the president. The Assembly was finally constituted on September 13.

Meanwhile, following several political meetings, Kurti and LDK leader Lumir Abdixhiku announced that they had agreed on Bekim Sejdiu’s candidacy for president.

The agreement was opposed by six LDK lawmakers, while Sejdiu later announced his withdrawal from the candidacy.

The June 7 elections were the result of the previous political crisis and the parties’ inability to reach an agreement on electing the president. If the election of the head of state also fails today, Kosovo is expected to face parliamentary elections once again, which would be the fourth such election within two years.