Kosovo Online filed a complaint with the ECAP over rejected accreditation to cover local elections in Kosovo

The Kosovo Online portal has filed a complaint with the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel (ECAP) against the decision of the Central Election Commission (CEC) to reject accreditation for 18 of its observers to cover the upcoming local elections in Kosovo, scheduled for October 12.

In its complaint, the outlet states that the CEC “wrongly applied substantive law,” specifically Article 48 of the Law on General Elections and Article 4, paragraph 3 of the Election Regulation, and requests that ECAP overturn the CEC’s decision and grant accreditation to its reporters and cameramen to cover election day.

VIM INFO, the founder of the Kosovo Online media outlet, stated in the appeal that it had fully met all the requirements prescribed by Articles 47, 48, and 49 of the cited law, and that the CEC itself confirmed in its explanation of the decision that Kosovo Online “meets all the criteria for accreditation and monitoring of the 2025 local elections.”

“In other words, the decision merely reflects the political will of the CEC members, who were appointed by political parties,” the complaint states.

The appeal also points to procedural irregularities, noting that the CEC decision was issued 14 days after the application was submitted, even though the election regulation prescribes a two-day deadline for approving or rejecting media accreditations.

“This puts the complainant in a disadvantageous position, as the appeal may be decided only after the local elections have already taken place,” the document notes.

To recall, the Central Election Commission accredited the first group of media outlets to cover the local elections, but none of the accredited outlets publish or broadcast in Serbian.

Among those denied accreditation were Kosovo Online, RTV Puls, TV Most, Kontakt Kosovska Mitrovica, Plus Radio, Prva TV, Radio KiM, Radio Television of Serbia, Tanjug, Gracanica Online, TV Gracanica, Mondo/Kurir TV, Insajder, Ninamedia, RTV Vojvodina, Radio KM, Alternativni, TV Herc, Video Plus, Nova.rs, Media Center Caglavica, and Danas.

The CEC provided Kosovo Online with both the decision and the official explanation for rejecting its accreditation, stating that the outlet meets all the necessary requirements, but that there were not enough votes “in favor” from the CEC members during the session.

One of those who opposed accreditation was a CEC member from the Self-Determination party, Alban Krasniqi, who justified his decision by claiming that Serbian-language media are “known for propaganda, defamation, and conducting a special war against Kosovo.”