Kosovo’s new government faces court challenge as presidential candidate withdraws
PDK has filed a constitutional challenge; Bekim Sejdiu has withdrawn from the presidential race.
Balkan Spectator · Automated news desk Published Updated Event / data date: 2026-09-15
Kosovo’s opposition PDK asked the Constitutional Court on 15 September to review the vote returning Albin Kurti as prime minister. The party alleges procedural violations in parliament’s inauguration; a filing is not a judgment invalidating the government. [3]
Bekim Sejdiu, the sole presidential candidate, had withdrawn the previous evening after divisions within the LDK left him without sufficient parliamentary support. Vetevendosje criticised the opposition’s boycott tactics, while the LDK leadership regretted his withdrawal. [3]
Kurti’s cabinet received 62 votes in the 120-seat assembly on 13 September. The latest developments leave government formation under legal challenge and the presidency unresolved. [3]
Adds PDK's filed constitutional challenge and Sejdiu's withdrawal, reported on 15 September.
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Kosovo parliament approves new Kurti government amid legal dispute
The cabinet won 62 votes in the 120-seat assembly; opposition parties boycotted and said they would challenge the procedure.
Kosovo's parliament approved a new government led by Albin Kurti on 13 September, with 62 votes in the 120-seat assembly. The vote follows his Vetevendosje party's victory in the June election.
Major opposition parties boycotted the session, alleged that post-election procedures had been violated and said they would challenge the process before the Constitutional Court. Those are political and legal claims; the new government was approved unless and until a competent court rules otherwise.
ContextThe cabinet vote ends one part of Kosovo's extended institutional deadlock, but uncertainty remains because parliament has not elected a president. Failure to fill that office could trigger another early election, while institutional stability remains relevant to EU-related reforms and dialogue with Serbia.
A largely peaceful protest in Pristina challenged the Kosovo Specialist Chambers' September verdicts as EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited.
