Nationalist Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s party won more than half of the votes in Sunday’s election, opening the way to create a new government after a year-long political deadlock that has paralysed parliament and delayed key international funding.
The vote is the second this year in Kosovo after Kurti’s Vetevendosje party fell short of a majority in February. Months of failed coalition talks prompted President Vjosa Osmani to dissolve parliament in November and call an early election.
Kurti’s party was leading with 50.2 per cent of Sunday’s vote, with 87 per cent of votes counted after polls closed at 7pm local time. Analysts say it is difficult to predict if Kurti will be able to form the government on its own without a coalition to secure the 61 seats in the 120-seat assembly.
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“The results are not final and I don’t see how Kurti will form the government alone but it will be very easy for him to govern with a small coalition,” said Ismet Kryeziu from the Kosovo Democratic Institute think-tank.
Kryeziu said Kurti needs few votes from Albanian or minority parties to form the new cabinet. The two main opposition parties, the Democratic Party and the Democratic League, were at 20.7 per cent and at 14 per cent, respectively.
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“The will of the citizens is now in the ballot boxes. Preserving this will is essential for the legitimacy and credibility of the electoral process,” Kurti said on a video message after exit polls were published.
Another failure to form a government and reopen parliament would prolong the crisis at a critical time. Lawmakers must elect a new president in April and ratify €1 billion (US$1.2 billion) in loan agreements from the European Union and World Bank that expire in the coming months.