CEC did not certify Serb List for participation in October 12 local elections

The Central Election Commission (CEC) did not certify the Serb List today for participation in the local elections scheduled for October 12. With two votes in favor, two against, and seven abstentions, the Serb List did not receive the necessary support from CEC members, Koha reported.

The President of the CEC, Kreshnik Radonici, and the Serb List representative voted in favor, while two members from Self-Determination opposed, and representatives of other parties abstained.

The proposal to certify the Serb List was opposed by Self-Determination’s Sami Kurteshi and Alban Krasniqi, who presented documents which, they claimed, show that the party’s candidates for mayors or municipal assembly members simultaneously hold positions in Serbia’s so-called parallel structures in Kosovo.

“We are dealing with a political party that has a terrorist past and a terrorist present. In addition, there are individuals who have participated in terrorist and other attacks. Now there are even criminal proceedings underway. These are people who, in a subversive way, work against the Republic of Kosovo. They hold positions in Serbia’s so-called parallel institutions while at the same time occupying positions, whatever they may be, in the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo,” Kurteshi said, as quoted by Koha.

He also referred to Sasa Milosevic, the Serb List’s candidate for mayor of Novo Brdo, describing him as “president of the parallel municipality of Gnjilane in the Serbian system” and calling him “Radoicic’s whip for Kosovo Pomoravlje.” Kurteshi argued that “the goal of these people is to undermine the Republic and destroy the sovereignty of Kosovo.”

Arijanit Elshani, a CEC member from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), said that members of his party would abstain, while noting that the Office for the Registration of Political Parties had recommended certification of the Serb List based on the established criteria.

“Each election cycle we face the same issue. I would have preferred to receive this information through institutional channels rather than only seeing it now. As PDK representatives, we are abstaining, considering these candidates and the ongoing discussions. We are not in favor of certification, but we abstain until there are concrete actions by security institutions to show us the way forward regarding this political entity,” Elshani explained.

Muharem Nitaj, a CEC member from the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), said he regretted that the documents had not been provided by the competent security and judicial institutions.

“The CEC Secretariat brings information and states that this party meets the formal criteria based on relevant data processed for certification. I feel there is no room for us to act—neither for nor against—except to refuse to vote or to abstain,” Nitaj said before the vote.

Sami Hamiti of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) argued that, in order to prohibit the Serb List from participating in elections, competent authorities would first need to designate it as a “terrorist organization.”

Meanwhile, the CEC certified all other major political parties for participation in the October 12 local elections.

Earlier today, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires in Pristina, Anu Pratipati, conveyed to Kosovo’s caretaker Prime Minister Albin Kurti that it is of paramount importance for Kosovo Serbs to take part in the elections.

Recently, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic also warned that Prime Minister Kurti would once again attempt to discredit and exclude the Serb List from the upcoming local elections in Kosovo.

Analysts cited by Kosovo Online have described such a scenario as “realistic, but difficult to implement due to the position of the international community.”