Certificate of Election Results - What Happens Unless an Agreement Is Reached?

The June 7th vote was the third parliamentary one that Kosovo organised in less than a year and a half.

The ruling Vetevendosje Movement (LVV) party has won 53 mandates. Opposition parties, the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), have won 22 seats; The Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) 18 seats and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) seven seats.

At the CEC meeting, held Wednesday morning, the head of this institution, Kreshnik Radoniqi, announced that only on the Alliance's MP list do there be changes, as two elected deputies have given up the mandate. As a result, Adrian Djind and Daut Haradinaj will be replaced by Beke Berisha and Burim Ramadani.

What does the certificate of results imply? What are the next steps towards forming new institutions, and what deadlines does the law provide? Can the process be unblocked if parties fail to reach agreement?

For these and procedures following the certificate, we explain the following.

What after the certificate?

Following the certificate of election results, the head speaker at the same time tasked by the country's president, Albulen Haxhiu, to call a constitutional session of the Parliament.

Under the constitution, the session should be held within 30 days of the certificate of results.

This session includes the constitution of the Parliament, elected mayors and vice-presidents, while then continuing with procedures for forming the new government.

After the constitution was introduced, Haxhiu nominated the winning election party as a mandate for forming the government, in this case Vetevendosje Movement.

Haxhiu wrote on Facebook following the certificate of results that he will call the Convention Constituent session within the set deadline with the Constitution, without telling when exactly.

Naim Jakaj, researcher at the Kosovo Institute for Justice (IKD), says that, although the constitutional deadline for holding the constitutional session is 30 days from the certificate of results, it could be called much earlier.

Because election results are already known, there are no objective reasons for the process to drag on”, he says.

For example, in the last parliamentary elections, held months ago, elected MPs formed the Parliament and voted the new Government in one day - at a single session on February 11th.

This became possible after representatives of the parliamentary parties and then Speaker of the Parliament, Dimal Basha, were publicly hired for the agenda, including the vote in package by the Parliament's deputy chairmans.

The process also facilitated the convincing victory of the incumbent prime minister's party, Albin Kurti, the Vetevendosje Movement.

Can the process last?

Since the ruling party appears to have votes for constitutionalising the Assembly and forming the Government, these two processes are not expected to face obstacles.

However, another issue could keep the country in institutional and political crisis: the election of the new president.

Kurti's party has won 53 seats in the 120-sosh Assembly, and needs at least 61 for the new Parliament and Government.

Given Kurt's current co-operation with the parties of non-Serb minorities - which enjoy 10 seats - then the votes for this process are not expected to be trouble.

LVV official Arberie Nagavci told the REL days ago that the ruling party has secured votes for forming the new government and that it will seek consensus with other parties on electing the president.

According to Jakaj, Kurti will be forced to sit down with opposition parties to find a political agreement to ensure that the country will have long-term functioning of institutions.

“A party that puts the state's interest in the first plan should bear in mind that any delay in forming institutions produces costs for the country, whether in European integration, economic development, reform implementation or the loss of significant opportunities for citizens”, Jakaj says.

EU chief in office in Kosovo Eva Palatova said in one communique on Wednesday that the responsibility now rests with the winning party to extend the hand of co-operation with other parliamentary parties to find a compromise agreement, which “will not only enable the Constitution of the Assembly and the formation of the Government, but also the election of President”.

“at the same time, all elected parties share the responsibility to engage in these confidential negotiations, to achieve this target”, she said.

It urged them to continue “together reforms that will put Kosovo's European integration at the centre of their decision-making and prove that compromise, in the function of Kosovo's European future, is possible”.

What happens if no agreement is reached?

The presence of 2/3 of MPs in the 120-seat Assembly is needed for the Kosovo president's vote to be valid.

In the absence of a political agreement, this is impossible for each parliamentary party.

The constitution envisions that the president must be elected within 60 days of the Parliament's binding day.

If that doesn't happen, the Assembly is distributed and the country goes to new elections, Jakaj says.

So far, political parties have not held talks on a possible political agreement for the president.

Kurti has expressed itself open to talks with other parties, while Nagavci told REL that their party “will do everything” in its mandate to achieve the votes needed for the election of the new president.

The PDK has said the party would be open for talks with all parties, without excluding either the LVV, while the LDK has set some preconditions for an agreement on establishing new institutions, including the issue of American gas.

Jakaj underlines that the party's current statements “indicate that the road to an agreement will not be easy”.

The “Kurti has expressed readiness for dialogue with other parties. But here it would take complete transparency to know if true will is the case. Public statements are not enough. There is no obstacle for parties to immediately start discussions on a political agreement, because any delay increases the risk of a new institutional crisis and repeat elections”, Jakaj points out.

If the country goes to the polls again, then they would be the fourth parliamentary elections since the beginning of 2025. /Periscopi/