There are only seven days left until the deadline set by the Constitutional Court for the election of a new president of Kosovo, but the parliamentary parties have not yet made public a candidate who can secure the necessary support in the Assembly. October 6, 2026; is the deadline within which the Assembly must complete the process of electing the head of state. If the president is not elected, the country may go to new parliamentary elections.
Currently, the Speaker of the Assembly, Albulena Haxhiu, is serving as the acting president. Her six-month term as acting president ends on October 4, and it is still unclear how the issue will be resolved after this period expires. The Assembly convened on Monday, but the election of the president was not on the agenda. After the session, representatives of the parliamentary parties gave no concrete signals of an agreement on a candidate.
LVV still without a candidate
The Vetëvendosje Movement, as the largest parliamentary party, has not yet announced whether it has a new name for the post of president. Prime Minister Albin Kurti met separately with the leader of the PDK, Bedri Hamza, and the leader of the LDK, Lumir Abdixhiku. The meetings were held in connection with a joint statement on the verdict of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. So far, it has not been announced whether the issue of electing the president was also discussed in these meetings.
Kurti has previously stated that if the Assembly fails to elect a president, the country will go to new elections. "If we fail to elect a new president, we will go to new elections, which will be the fourth elections within two years. New elections are unnecessary and costly," Kurti had declared.
Sejdiu withdrew from the candidacy
One of the names previously proposed for president was Bekim Sejdiu. He later announced his withdrawal from the candidacy. Sejdiu was proposed by the LVV and LDK, but his candidacy did not make it to the voting stage, as several LDK deputies voted against it. After his withdrawal, no other candidate has been made public so far.
The head of the LDK Parliamentary Group, Jehona Lushaku, has stated that her party is ready to contribute to the election of the president and the avoidance of new elections. "We as a party have said that it is important to avoid elections, since we have had elections, but this requires the will of all parliamentary groups, or all political parties. We, as individuals, cannot give Kosovo a president, but we are ready to give our contribution to the establishment of these institutions," said Lushaku.
PDK: The president's issue should not be linked to the Special Investigation Unit
The head of the PDK Parliamentary Group, Arian Tahiri, has denied that the vote on the draft law proposed by his party to amend the Law on Specialized Chambers could condition the vote for the president. "These are topics that should not be linked. The law is a separate topic, it is the national, institutional, political and individual responsibility of each Albanian MP. While the issue of the president is a matter of the will of the political parties, which must definitely have a proactive approach, consensus and not be the cause of successive elections," said Tahiri.
Meanwhile, the head of the Alliance Parliamentary Group, Besnik Tahiri, has criticized the lack of a political process to resolve the president's issue.
According to him, parties should focus on institutional issues and the October 6 deadline, warning that otherwise the country faces a new political situation.
The Presidency of the Assembly is complete.
In the last session, the Assembly elected Vlora Çitaku of the PDK as the Deputy Speaker of the Assembly of Kosovo with 95 votes in favor, none against, and no abstentions. With her election, the Presidency of the Assembly was completed.
The Speaker of the Assembly is Albulena Haxhiu of LVV, while the Deputy Speakers are Ardian Gola of LVV, Kujtim Shala of LDK, Tanja Vujovic of the Serbian List and Emilija Rexhepi from non-Serb communities. However, despite the completion of the Presidency of the Assembly, the election of the President still remains unresolved. The parliamentary parties have seven days to reach an agreement on the presidential candidate, before the deadline set by the Constitutional Court expires on October 6, 2026.
