Democratic Party of Kosovo

The ruling Democratic Party of Kosovo, PDK, and the recently established coalition between the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, AAK, the Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK and Nisma per Kosoven [Initiative for Kosovo] are still at loggerheads over who has the right to form a new government.

Prime Minister Thaci has said that his governing Democratic Party of Kosovo, PDK, has a right to form the next government of Kosovo, as it won the most votes in the recent general election.

PRISTINA - Kosovo's Central Electoral Commission (CEC) late Monday announced the preliminary results of the early legislative elections, not including the votes of displaced persons - Hasim Taci's Democratic Party of Kosovo (DPK) won the polls, while the Srpska list received 4.18 percent of the votes.

PRISTINA – Hasim Taci’s Democratic Party of Kosovo (DPK) won the snap parliamentary elections in Kosovo-Metohija (KiM) on Sunday.

With a little more than 94 percent of the votes counted, and still incomplete results from the north of Kosovo, the DPK held 31.21 percent of the vote, the Central Election Commission (CEC) in Pristina has said.

Thaci said after polls closed that his Democratic Party of Kosovo, PDK, had won the elections, although the Central Election Commission reported a turnout of only 43.2 per cent.

“As of tomorrow morning we will continue to fulfil our duties. As of tomorrow we will start to implement our ‘New Mission’,” former Kosovo Liberation Army leader Thaci said in a speech on Sunday night.

More than 1,700,000 voters in Kosovo have the right to head to polling stations today to elect their new members of parliament. The elections are being held in 798 polling centres in all 38 municipalities.

The shortest election campaign in Kosovo's history will end on Friday midnight - but experts warn that the battle for power is likely to become harsher in the final days.

Shpend Kursani, a political expert, said the campaign would likely get tougher, precisely because the outcome of the election was so uncertain.

Zekirja Shabani from the daily newspaper Tribuna was appointed new head of the Association of Journalists of Kosovo after a vote by around 200 members.

The journalists from various media outlets also voted for eight new board members.

Kosovo's opposition Vetevendosje Movement has filed a complaint at the Election Appeals and Complaints Panel, EACP, accusing Thaci of misusing “public funds” in campaigning for the general elections.

General elections will be held on June 8, while the campaign will last from May 28 to June 6.

Members of the Kosovo Central Election Commission, CEC, are concerned they will have only a limited time to prepare for early general elections if they are held next month.

“If June 8 is set as the date, the CEC will have only about 30 days, which will be quite challenging,” Florian Dushi, a CEC member, told BIRN.