Gogic: The Liaison Office is not used for voting; it is best for Serbs outside Kosovo to go to their polling stations

For Serbs who live or primarily spend time in central Serbia but have Kosovo-issued documents, there is no option to vote in the February elections at a diplomatic mission as the CEC has provided for expatriates, since Kosovo does not have one in Serbia, as there is only a Liaison Office, which does not serve that purpose. Their options are either to vote by mail or to exercise their voting rights directly in Kosovo, political scientist Ognjen Gogic says to Kosovo Online.

The problem with voting by mail, as he explains, is that the Postal Services of Serbia and Kosovo do not recognize or cooperate with each other. However, this has previously been circumvented by sending mail through intermediary postal services in North Macedonia or Montenegro.

“This is not an unknown mechanism. It was used in the 2019 and 2021 parliamentary elections in Kosovo, where some votes were received this way. There were obstacles, and some envelopes did not arrive on time, or the votes received were rejected due to alleged procedural reasons, but the possibility of voting via intermediary postal services does exist. Citizens who have already used this method know how the procedure works, they just need to follow the CEC’s instructions, and it is possible to accomplish. However, it is certainly not the most ideal way. The best option would be for citizens who can vote in Kosovo to exercise that right in Kosovo itself since there is enough time. Previous election cycles were mostly extraordinary and in a short period, but now it is possible to organize for these people to go to Kosovo individually or in groups, and that would be the best option,” Gogic believes.

He reminds that the number of Serbs who turn out to vote does not affect the number of seats that Serbs have in the Kosovo parliament, as the Serbian community has ten guaranteed seats, regardless of the voter turnout.

“Even if the turnout is lower, no one can challenge those seats, and there is no fear that if Serbs outside Kosovo are eventually unable to vote due to procedural reasons, it will affect the number of parliamentary seats. However, it is still good for as many people as possible to vote so that the elected representatives have broader legitimacy,” Gogic says.