Where will voting take place in the north on February 9, and will there be security challenges?

In the four municipalities in northern Kosovo, eligible voters will be able to vote in parliamentary elections on February 9 at 45 polling stations designated by the Central Election Commission, most of which are located in primary and secondary schools. In the municipality of Leposavic, in addition to schools, voting will also take place at the local Office for Communities and even in a private home. In the municipality of Zubin Potok, aside from educational institutions, the Health Center in the village of Oklace is also listed as a polling station.

Written by:  Dusica Radeka Djordjevic

The Director of the "Nikola Tesla" Secondary School in Leposavic, Sladjan Radovic, told Kosovo Online that representatives of the Municipal Election Commission had informed them that voting on February 9 would be organized in the school.

"Representatives of the Municipal Election Commission came to visit us once so far and informed us that one of the polling stations would be the 'Nikola Tesla' Secondary School and that, according to procedure, voting is planned to be organized in all primary schools as well. We only had that one meeting, and no one has visited us since," Radovic stated.

Voting in schools in the north, which operate within the Serbian system, was standard practice during previous election cycles until the extraordinary local elections on April 23, 2023, when voting was organized in temporary containers. Those elections were boycotted by Serbs, as was the vote on April 17 of this year regarding the dismissal of Albanian mayors in four municipalities, which was also held at alternative locations. Three months later, directors of primary and secondary schools in the north received summonses from the Kosovo Prosecutor's Office for questioning "due to obstruction of local elections," while some directors' lawyers claimed their clients did not prevent voting in the schools.

Dragisa Mijacic, Coordinator of the Working Group of the National Convention on the EU for Chapter 35, pointed out that a political agreement should be reached before the February 9 parliamentary elections regarding the use of facilities, especially schools in the north, for voting. He noted that this would be a good way to motivate citizens to turn out in large numbers for these elections.

"This would be a good way for the Serbian side to show constructiveness in this process and a good way to motivate citizens to turn out in large numbers for these elections because they are very important not only for Kosovo but also for the Serbian community. Therefore, I really don’t see any reason why schools should remain closed for the next election process in Kosovo," Mijacic told Kosovo Online.

Regarding security in Serbian communities in the north on election day, Miodrag Milicevic, Executive Director of the NGO Aktiv, assessed that all elections in Kosovo have always carried a certain security risk, and that risk is heightened in the north. Considering the current political complexity, he said, the risk level will undoubtedly be carefully evaluated ahead of the February parliamentary elections.

"The police always adopt an operational plan to deploy additional forces, secure polling stations and election materials. At the same time, special attention is paid in areas like the north, perceived as high-risk zones, to strengthen this operational plan to ensure maximum safety, not only for those participating in the election process but also for the election materials and personnel working on election day," Milicevic explained to Kosovo Online.

He recalled the elections held in northern Kosovo in 2013 when the implementation of the Brussels Agreement was in its early stages, and the integrity of the election process was compromised due to incidents of ballot box destruction, which led to the decision to repeat voting at certain polling stations.

Despite many challenges, he added, it is clear that it is in the interest of Serbs in the north, and across Kosovo, to participate in the election process.

"It is also clear that everyone benefits from returning the process to a political level instead of police actions and constant political turbulence. This means establishing political dialogue. There is hope among the Serbian population, as well as among politicians, that certain political changes will occur in Kosovo. These are all motivations for the participation of political parties in the elections and for mobilizing voters. It is essential at this moment to achieve political stability at the Kosovo level so that this unfavorable situation for the Serbian population in Kosovo can return to a political platform and political solutions can be found instead of police interventions," Milicevic said.

Commenting on the inclusion of the Health Center on the list of polling locations in northern municipalities as designated by the Central Election Commission, Milicevic said such a decision deviates from standard norms.

"Considering everything that has happened in recent years, I do not rule out such a possibility. However, it would be extremely unusual as it contradicts certain electoral norms that require specific rules for ensuring the integrity of elections and selecting polling stations. These rules include being appropriate for the majority of residents in a given area and located within an acceptable distance for that region," he stated.

Political entities—parties, coalitions, civic initiatives, and independent candidates—intending to participate in the elections on February 9 must submit their candidate lists for parliamentary seats to the Office for Registration, Certification, and Financial Oversight of Political Entities by December 11.