Kosovo’s deeply divided parliamentarians failed to elect a president on Tuesday. As a result, the country is heading for a third election in just over a year.
In the previous elections in December, Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s party received 51 percent of the votes. However, Kurti failed to find enough allies in parliament to support his candidate for president before the midnight deadline.
Kurti, 50, was briefly Prime Minister of Kosovo in 2020 and again from 2021 to 2025. He was acting Prime Minister for the last twelve months.
“This session marks the end of the current legislature. Elections will be called within the period prescribed by the constitution,” parliament speaker Albulena Haxhiu said at midnight after opposition MPs boycotted the vote.
Once again, insufficient MPs were present for the vote. The constitution requires a two-thirds presence.
New elections
New elections will now be called within 45 days. This election will be the third in more than a year. The previous parliamentary elections took place on December 28.
Kosovo has been struggling with constitutional disputes and legal proceedings at the Supreme Court for two years. The political impasse is hampering reform efforts that are crucial to the Balkan state’s ambitions to join the European Union.
