PRISTINA – Bekim Sejdiu, lawyer and university professor, withdrew his candidacy for President of Kosovo, citing a lack of necessary parliamentary support and noting that the process had turned into internal political clashes, it was reported by media outlets in Pristina.
On 14 September, Sejdiu said that he had accepted the candidacy considering the institutional crisis and the need to unblock the political situation, Balkanweb.com wrote.
Nevertheless, the process has failed to secure the necessary support in the Assembly.
“In the circumstances created, characterized by the lack of the necessary parliamentary support for my election as President and by the deviation of the entire process into the vortex of internal political dynamics and clashes, I have decided to withdraw from the candidacy for President of the Republic”, Sejdiu stressed.
In late August, Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti reached a deal with the opposition Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), which has 18 MPs, to back Bekim Sejdiu as the new president. A day later, six LDK lawmakers said they would not respect their leader’s decision.
If parliament fails to elect a new president, Kosovo would have to hold another snap election, the fourth in only two years.
