Kosovo approves new government as presidential deadlock looms

Kosovo's parliament has approved a new government led by acting Prime Minister Albin Kurti, ending three months of political paralysis. The vote gives the country a temporary reprieve, but it does not resolve the deeper dispute over who will become president. That issue now stands at the centre of the next phase of the crisis.

Sponsored

The new administration was backed by 62 lawmakers in the 120-seat assembly, Parliamentary Speaker Albulena Haxhiu said on Sunday. Kurti's Vetevendosje party still needs opposition support to reach the two-thirds majority required to elect a president. It remains unclear when that vote will take place, and the timetable has not been set.

If parliament fails to elect a new president, Kosovo would have to hold another snap election, which would be the fourth in only two years. Kurti's party has won three legislative elections since February 2025, including two snap polls in December 2025 and June 2026, but it has not secured enough support to install the largely symbolic head of state. The unresolved presidency therefore remains a major test of whether the new government can turn parliamentary backing into durable political stability.

The deadlock also has wider significance because it is tied to Kosovo's relations with Serbia and with Western partners. Opposition parties have accused Kurti of taking unilateral steps in the Serb-dominated north and of straining ties with the United States and the European Union. Those tensions have made cooperation harder at home, while also complicating Kosovo's external standing at a sensitive moment.

Sponsored

In late August, Kurti reached an agreement with the opposition Democratic League of Kosovo to support law professor Bekim Sejdiu for president. That deal quickly weakened when six LDK lawmakers said they would not follow their leader's decision. The episode underlines how fragile the parliamentary arithmetic remains, even after the government vote.

The political crisis has already had practical consequences beyond the assembly chamber. Legislative reforms needed for European Union integration have been delayed, putting some pre-accession funding at risk. What happens next depends on whether parties can agree on a president and avoid another election, but that outcome is still uncertain.

The main question now is whether the new government can secure enough cross-party support before the deadlock deepens again.

#Kosovo #AlbinKurti #parliament #presidentialvote #politicaldeadlock

Sponsored