Victory of the Self-Determination Party in Kosovo

15th February 202118th February 2021 B2 Writing

(B2 in Pristina) With 48% of the vote according to the first estimates, Vetëvendosje ("self-determination") wins the legislative elections on Sunday (14 February). A clear victory for this left-wing party which, just 13 years after the declaration of independence, intends to turn the page on war veterans and fight vigorously against the corruption that plagues the country.

On Sunday evening, Kosovars gathered in the center of Pristina, the capital, here under the gaze of former President Ibrahim Rugova (LDK) (Aurélie Pugnet/B2)

Sunday evening, at 19 p.m., the polling stations closed in Kosovo. Shortly after, the first results came in and the city center of the capital, Pristina, came alive with horns and parades of Albanian flags (1).

Victory for the left

Supporters of the Vetëvendosje ("self-determination") party let their cries of joy be heard in the pedestrian streets of Pristina. From three-year-old children barely standing in the snow, to old gentlemen, to student troupes, everyone sang the names of 'Vetëvendosje' and 'Albin Kurti', the leader of this left-wing party. Victory was expected. And it is unequivocal for this anti-corruption and anti-establishment. For Albin Kurti, this election “ turned into a referendum “, he congratulated himself on his thread Twitter. On the right, the PDK (democratic party / ECR) – historically the party of the heroes of the war and the "liberation" of Kosovo from the Serbian yoke -, gathers around 17% of the vote. The country's other historic party, the LDK (Democratic League/EPP), has to make do with about 13%.

In the north of Kosovo and in the various 'enclaves' with a majority Serbian community, it is the Serbian List (Serbian list) which won almost all the votes – more than 80% in the three northern regions. Again, no surprises. Among the flags of Serbia, the posters of the Serbian List meet with no opposition.

In North Mitrovica, the Serbian List is omnipresent (Aurélie Pugnet / B2)

Upcoming discussions with the Europeans

These elections come as the strategic review of the European Union Mission for the Support of the Rule of Law in Kosovo (EULEX Kosovo) is underway, and the dialogue between Pristina (Kosovo) and Belgrade (Serbia) barely relaunch. The one who should become Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, has already announced that the relaunch of the Dialogue with Belgrade is in “ fifth or sixth » position of its priorities, reports the Deutsche Welle. Moreover, he is known for his very critical position towards the United Nations mission (UNMIK) in Kosovo and the European mission EULEX. With regard to EULEX, “ reviews are over two years ago “, notes the head of the mission, Lars-Gunnar Wigemark. He has since met Albin Kurti during his brief experience as prime minister in early 2020 (2). In particular, he states, we discussed some very specific operational issues, for example he asked us for help on the issue of missing persons ».

(Aurélie Pugnet, special correspondent in Pristina)

The Albanian flag is the 'national' flag of the country, displayed by the Albanian majority. While the blue flag, with the shape of the country, is the official state flag of Kosovo.
Albin Kurti was prime minister from February to June 2020, before his government was overthrown by a motion of no confidence tabled by the LDK, a member of his parliamentary majority. This motion came after the dismissal by A. Kurti of an LDK minister who had supported the implementation of the state of emergency of President H. Thaci.