Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s party took a big lead in early elections on Sunday marked by low turnout, winning a majority of votes but not enough to govern alone, preliminary results showed.
In Kosovo’s third election in just over a year, Kurti’s Vetëvendosje party won nearly 44% of the vote, according to early results with about a third of the votes counted.
But it falls short of the previous election in December, when the party got 51%.
It is not enough to allow Vetëvendosje to form the next government on its own, suggesting difficult coalition talks ahead.
The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) in the opposition received 21 and 17% of the votes, respectively, partial counting showed.
The election was held as voter frustration grows at political gridlock in Europe’s newest country.
Kosovo’s polarized parliament failed to elect a president in April, deepening a political crisis that has gripped the country since inconclusive parliamentary elections in February 2025.
“Enough is enough,” retired teacher Gezim Selimi told AFP after casting his vote in the capital Pristina.
“I expect that the parties will finally come to their senses and work for Kosovo, instead of wasting time fighting for power through early elections one after the other.”
Despite leading the polls in the February 2025 vote, Kurti’s party fell short of the majority needed to form a government, sparking months of bitter division among MPs and ultimately forcing early elections in December.
The Vetëvendosje party – which combines a leftist agenda with fervent nationalism – again led the vote and joined with ethnic minority MPs to form a government.
But an opposition boycott of the vote to replace the outgoing president sank parliament.
“I don’t think I will vote. It’s disappointing to see that the election will give the same result,” computer programmer Miranda Fazliu told AFP before the election, echoing the view of many voters.
Brussels looks at how Kosovo goes to the polls amid the political crisis
Voters in Kosovo will head to the polling stations on Sunday for the third time in…
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Low participation
On Sunday, Kurti called on the citizens to come out en masse.
“Greater participation will translate into higher legitimacy and stability for the institutions of our republic,” he said after casting his vote in Pristina.
The turnout was nearly 37%, official figures showed. In the December vote, she was about eight percentage points higher.
Experts say lawmakers’ inability to work across political divides means the latest vote is unlikely to resolve anything and predicts the crisis will continue.
Safet Gerxhaliu, a university lecturer, said the problem had become “systemic” and was now “constantly driving people back to the polls”.
“It is undoubtedly the biggest crisis in Kosovo since the declaration of independence” from Serbia in 2008, he said.
“The institutions are on the verge of collapse”.
The next election cycle comes amid rising living costs, which are being felt keenly by voters in one of Europe’s poorest countries.
“Life has become more expensive. You can see that in a single visit to the store,” said painter Faton Kryeziu, with a gallery full of work he is struggling to sell.
“Sales are at zero today. It’s never been harder for me.”
Election costs
The cost of Sunday’s vote was estimated at more than 10 million euros ($11.5 million), excluding campaign spending by political parties.
The total cost of elections is fivefold when two national and two local elections held in 2025 are added.
“Political parties have shown a lot of immaturity as we are not a rich enough country to hold two elections every year and the money spent on them would be better used for development,” said retired judge Virgjina Dumnica.
Dr.
“That worries me. We’ll be left with only the elderly.”
(cz)
