The court cancels the second round in KDP members' elections by the Supreme Court, orders the Certificate of the first outcome for Memaj and Thaci

The case relates to the election process held on January 23rd 2026, when 34 of the 35 Supreme Court judges participated in the vote for two positions in the Council. In the first round, out of 34 ballots, 33 were valid and an invalid. Majrem Memaj and Rrustem Thaqi had received 17 votes each, while the Hyseni Union and Franciska Dzitia-Ymer out of 16 votes.

The election commission had concluded that no candidate had achieved the necessary majority and had continued with the second round of voting. In that round, Rrustem Thaqi and Franciska Dzitya-Ymer had received 19 votes each, while Majrem Memaj and Bashkim Hyseni out of 15 votes, after which KDR had certified Thaci and Juliet-Ymer as new members.

Majrem Memaj, represented by lawyer Besnik Berisha, had filed the indictment on February 18th 2026, demanding the annulment of the KDR decision on January 29th, 2026, with which the final outcome of the second round was certified.

It had also sought to be known as valid only the outcome of the first round, under which it and Thaqi Rrustem Thaqi were to be declared winners.

Memaj had argued that in the first round, he had won 51.52% of the valid votes, and that most should be counted only on valid votes, not on invalid votes or the total number of participants.

According to the indictment, the election commission had acted arbitraryly when it had decided to move to the second round, violating the regulation for procedure and criteria for electing KDP members and constitutional practices mentioned in the cases of C34/17 and K55/17.

Memaj had stressed that she and Rrustem Thaqi had achieved the necessary majority in the first round and that the decision to proceed with the second round had denied a right gained in the election process.

It had also called for suspending the implementation of the KDP decision, arguing that its execution would cause irreparable damage to professional integrity and its constitutional rights.

The KDP had rejected the indictment, claiming the necessary majority for the election was 18 votes and that this majority was counted on the total number of voter participants, including the invalid vote.

According to the KDP, no candidate had achieved this majority in the first round, so the transition to the second round was necessary and in line with the regulation.

Even the third person, Franciska Dzitia-Ymer, had backed KDK's stance, stressing that the invalid vote could not be excluded from the basis of majority reckoning and that the process had been conducted fairly and constitutionally.

The Constitutional Court in Pristina has found that Mayrem Memaj's application is based.

The bias reportedly says the KDP's interpretation of the majority's way of calculating has been wrong and there has been insufficient legal basis for holding the second round of voting.

The court has estimated that valid results have been created in the first round, where Majrem Memaj and Rrustem Thaqi have received 17 votes and met the conditions for being considered elected.

Also, the court has annulled KDP rulings no. 38/2026 and No. 39/2026 of January 29th, 2026, including Certificate of the second round result.

Under the trial, the KDK is obliged to issue new administrative rulings within 15 days and certify the outcome of the first round, under which Marem Memaj and Rrustem Thaqi are declared members of the KDR from the ranks of the Supreme Court.

The court has also ordered the KDR to compensate Mareme Memaj's cost of the procedure worth 2,750.34 euros.

The ruling is not of a firm form, and a complaint is allowed at the Court of Appeals within the 15-day legal deadline.

Judge Marem Memaj had indicted the Kosovo Judiciary Council ( KDP), seeking to annul the decision with which the election outcome for two Council members was certified from the third degree. Memaj had also filed a request for a measure of security ésitary suspension of the January 29, 2026, decision.

From the Certificate of the election result, the KDP had found that new members of the Council from the Supreme ranks are Rrustem Thaqi and Franciska Jutija-Ymer. The last two were chosen in the second round. Therefore, plaintiff Memaj wants to certificate the result that came out of the first round and that she and Thaci be elected members after receiving the required majority of votes, reports “Justice Vow”.

It says that the election process took place on January 23rd, 2026, in which of 35 judges rightly voted in attendance were 34 judges from the Supreme Court, and that only one was declared invalid. And after the count, Memaj had received 17 votes as much as Rrustem Thaqi, and from 16 Bashkim Hyseni and Franciska Gitia-Ymer.

Otherwise, at the meeting, held on January 29, 2026, the Council had illegally rejected the opposition submitted by the KDR member candidate from the Supreme Court judges' ranks, Marem Memaj, thus certified the election outcome held in this court and the Appeals.

According to presiding Albert Zogajt, judges Rrustem Thaqi and Franciska Gjithia-Ymer begin the mandate as KDP members on March 9th 2026 of the Supreme Court judges' ranks, and Judge Aferdita Bytyqi also begins his mandate on 9th March 2026, to members of the Supreme Court's judges,

Otherwise, the voting process for members was held on January 23rd, 2026, where after the second round of voting for the two new members from the Supreme ranks, Judge Rrustem Thaqi and Judge Franciska Juitia-Ymer were elected new members, launching a 5-year term. /Periscope