Democratic League of Kosovo

Chronicle of a defeat foretold

Workers place a giant electoral poster showing candidate for prime minister of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) Avdullah Hoti in Pristina, Kosovo, February 4, 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

Political leaders in Kosovo have accepted the landslide victory of the Vetevendosje Movement in Sunday's snap parliamentary elections, with some saying they took responsibility for their own parties' poor showing.

The opposition Vetevendosje party was on course for a landslide victory in snap parliamentary elections in Kosovo on Sunday, on a day that its leader and prime ministerial candidate, Albin Kurti, described as a "bright day" when he cast his ballot at a Pristina polling centre in the morning.

Voters in Kosovo will cast their ballots today in snap parliamentary elections - the sixth such poll in 14 years -  which analysts have predicted will be a much tighter race than usual.

Key Information: 

More than 1,000 MP candidates will be keeping their fingers crossed on Sunday, awaiting the voters' verdict in Kosovo's sixth parliamentary elections in under 14 years.

Some 28 political entities are on the ballot papers seeking votes in yet another early election. Since 20017, not one cabinet in Kosovo has succeeded in completing its full four-year term.

With only a few days left before Sunday's snap polls in Kosovo, voters are again having to turn their attention to the election pledges of the political leaders touring towns and villages.

Acting President Vjosa Osmani paid tribute at Ibrahim Rugova's memorial in Pristina, saying that the path that he paved "remains a permanent guideline" for Kosovo.

Kosovo Police fined over 1,300 citizens in the last three days for not respecting government measures against COVID-19 - as political parties continue holding mass gatherings, preparing for the February 14 elections.

Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti has repeatedly stated that consultations will be held with the country's political parties to discuss choosing the next president after Hashim Thaci's resignation, but his office told BIRN that the government has not yet set a date for talks.

BIRN Kosovo Director Jeta Xharra has been criticised after she and a camera crew visited the Infectious Disease Clinic on Prishtina in Tuesday, where dozens of COVID-19 patients were being treated, to see if it was possible to gain access.