Kosovo’s ruling party takes lead in snap election

ISTANBUL

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s party declared victory Sunday in early parliamentary elections in the Balkan country.

With counting of approximately 98% of the ballots completed, the Vetevendosje (Self-Determination Movement) party had received 49.62% of the vote.

Speaking to journalists at his party’s headquarters, Kurti said his party had achieved the "biggest victory in the history of the country.”

He said that once the final results are announced, they will form the new government and continue their good work.

He also said he expected cooperation from opposition parties so that international agreements can be passed by Parliament.

Kurti later celebrated the election victory with his supporters in the center of the capital, Pristina.

According to data published on the website of the Kosovo Central Election Commission, Vetevendosje (VV) ranked first with 49.62%, followed by the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) with 21.17%, the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) with 13.68%, and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) with 5.71%.

The Kosovo Democratic Turkish Party (KDTP), which competed to win the two seats guaranteed for Kosovo Turks, received 0.62% of the vote, or 5,332 votes.

For Vetevendosje to form the new government, it will be sufficient to once again reach an agreement with community parties, including the KDTP, which was also a coalition partner in the previous term.

In a preliminary assessment, voter turnout was reported to be 44.99%, but this figure does not include conditional ballots, votes cast at diplomatic missions or votes submitted by mail.

Kosovo police announced that the election process passed calmly without any serious incidents.

In a country with 1,999,204 registered voters, 120 members of parliament will be elected from among 24 political entities to serve a four-year term.

Vetevendosje has emerged as the party with the most votes in the last three general elections held in the country.