Milenkovic: Political actors aware that new elections are the only option, but no agreement on the date

Marko Milenkovic from the non-governmental organization "New Social Initiative" based in North Mitrovica says that new elections could be held through political consensus among the parties that have taken seats in the Assembly. This would involve first forming the Assembly, then dissolving it and calling for elections. However, he notes that recent developments have shown there's no chance of reaching such a consensus.

"On one hand, the Self-Determination continues to hold its position of not wanting to change its candidate for the Assembly Speaker and refuses to make the process constructive for the opposition in order to secure consensus for taking further steps. On the other hand, the opposition insists on changing the candidate. So, at this moment, it seems impossible to reach political consensus," Milenkovic told Kosovo Online.

The second option to trigger elections, he says, would be to appeal to the Constitutional Court.

"We already have one opinion from the Constitutional Court, which did not clarify the situation – on the contrary, it further complicated it and didn’t provide clear guidance on what to do. A 30-day deadline was set for the Assembly to be formed, i.e., for the Speaker to be elected, but there was no indication of what should happen afterward. So, we don’t know what this second route would entail, and we are all awaiting a new decision from the Constitutional Court or some other authority," he explained.

If an agreement were to be reached regarding the election of the Assembly Speaker and the Assembly were then dissolved by consensus, elections could be held in a short period, as organizing them requires 30 to 45 days.

"I’m certain that all political actors are aware that new elections are the only option, but there is no agreement on the date of the elections. I believe Self-Determination would prefer to combine local and parliamentary elections for several reasons, one being the lack of strong local candidates. Another reason is the lack of results that could secure a stronger local outcome, as well as the opportunity to use nationalist rhetoric, particularly the North, as a platform for political campaigning in local elections. This has become a strategy Self-Determination uses to mobilize voters," Milenkovic points out.

On the other hand, Milenkovic feels the opposition does not want to combine the elections and would prefer the process to be delayed until a later period.

"This also ties into the upcoming election of the next President of Kosovo, scheduled for next year. The situation is currently complex, and it seems that political parties are weighing their options. At the same time, the situation is absurd and somewhat reflects the irresponsibility of political parties and institutions. From a legal standpoint, it has exposed all the shortcomings within Kosovo’s legislative framework," our interlocutor emphasizes.