PRISTINA – After 90.47% of polling stations had been processed in Kosovo’s snap parliamentary elections, the Vetëvendosje Movement (VV) won 43.71% of the vote, securing more than 273,000 votes, according to the first preliminary results.
The Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) received 21.58% of the vote, or around 135,000 votes, while the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) won 17.99%, corresponding to approximately 113,000 votes. The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) secured 7.28% of the vote, or around 46,000 votes.
Voter turnout was lower than in the parliamentary elections held on 28 December last year, and among the four largest political parties, only Vetëvendosje recorded a weaker result than in that election.
Compared with the elections held at the end of December last year, Vetëvendosje saw its support decline from more than 51% to around 43% of the vote, while the LDK increased its share from 13.57% to nearly 18%.
AAK leader and the party’s candidate for prime minister, Ardian Gjini, described his party’s result as an “extraordinary success” and thanked citizens for their support.
“For us, this is an extraordinary result, and all those who believed in what we said during the campaign will not regret it. We will work hard to ensure that their vote and will are fully respected,” Gjini said at a press conference.
At the same time, he criticised the electoral process, arguing that the campaign had not been conducted on a level playing field and that various mechanisms had been used in favour of the ruling parties.
The results currently cover only votes cast at polling stations in Kosovo, while ballots from the diaspora and conditional votes still remain to be counted.
Following the announcement of the preliminary results, supporters of the Vetëvendosje Movement began celebrating in Pristina, where, according to local media reports, dozens of the party’s supporters gathered.
Serbian List won an absolute majority in all Serb-majority municipalities and will secure all 10 reserved seats.
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos congratulated Vetëvendosje leader Albin Kurti on his election victory and called on political forces to find compromises in order to ensure institutional stability.
“Congratulations to Albin Kurti on winning the elections in Kosovo, and especially on the peaceful, inclusive and orderly electoral process. For Kosovo to advance on its EU path, political forces must now come together and find compromises to build institutional stability,” Kos wrote on X.
She added that she looks forward to visiting Kosovo soon to intensify work on its European integration and the continued implementation of funding under the EU Growth Plan.
