Kosovo, Justina Shiroka Pula elected President: return to vote avoided

In the early hours of today, the Kosovo Parliament managed to elect a president for the country, narrowly avoiding the fourth legislative elections in less than two years.

Albin Kurti's government has reached an agreement with the opposition to obtain a two-thirds majority and thus elect Justina Shiroka Pula. The role of president in Kosovo is predominantly honorific.

Opposition MPs agreed to endorse Pula's choice after Kurti approved a law aimed at reducing the powers of the tribunal responsible for judging war crimes, at the center of clashes that occurred on Monday.

Last month, that court sentenced former President Hashim Thaçi to 25 years in prison for war crimes committed during the conflict for independence from Serbia in the 1990s. He also imposed sentences of between 13 and 25 years on three other senior members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) for murder, unlawful arrest, torture and cruel treatment. The verdict had sparked outrage among protesters in the Balkan country, where the four men are widely considered heroes of independence.

Kosovo had been in a political stalemate since the legislative elections in February 2025. For months, Prime Minister Kurti had failed to form a parliamentary majority or appoint a new government, as his Vetëvendosje (Self-Determination) party had only 48 seats out of 120. Thanks to the early elections in December, the party had increased its support to 57 seats; Kurti was thus able to get his new administration approved in February, with the support of several deputies representing minorities. However, former President Vjosa Osmani's mandate expired at the beginning of April, plunging the country back into a political crisis characterized by disagreements over the name of the future head of state and the prospect of new elections in June, until the final compromise reached today.