ECAP approves Serbian List's annex to CEC decision

2026-02-03 16:37:06, Kosova & Bota CNA

The Electoral Complaints and Appeals Panel (ECAP) has approved the appeal of the Serbian List regarding the decision of the Central Election Commission not to include the list of candidates of this entity in the announcement of the results for the December 28 parliamentary elections.

The ECAP said that the CEC's January 31 decision is "unjustified" and contrary to "legal provisions."

According to the decision, the ECAP said that the announcement of the final result is made after the completion of the counting and recount for all political entities and must include all electoral entities "without exception".

"Any partial announcement of the final result, in such circumstances, has no legal basis and contradicts the principles of equality of electoral subjects, legal certainty and transparency of the electoral process. Therefore, this decision is contrary to good electoral practices and also contrary to the standards of the Venice Commission," the ECAP decision published on February 3 said.

This decision can be appealed to the Supreme Court within 48 hours. In addition to the decision on the Serbian List, the ECAP also reviewed six other appeals, which it rejected as unfounded.

The Serbian List, the main Serb party in Kosovo that has the support of Belgrade, filed a complaint with the ECAP on February 2, describing the decision as "illegal, anti-Serb and discriminatory".

On January 31, the CEC announced the final results of the December 28 snap parliamentary elections. But during the meeting, the Commission members approved the candidate lists of all parties except the Serbian List – the main Serb party in Kosovo that has the support of Belgrade.

Three CEC members voted in favor, two against from the Vetëvendosje Movement, and the remaining members abstained.

During the meeting, the head of the CEC, Kreshnik Radoniqi, described as "nonsense" the disapproval of the composition of the Serbian List by the members of the Commission, arguing that the deadline for complaints had passed since the votes had already been recounted and, according to the laws, no complaints are foreseen for such a process.

The CEC's decision was criticized by the United States and the European Union.

A spokesperson for the US embassy in Pristina told Radio Free Europe that the CEC's decision is "contrary to the right of citizens to democratically elect their representatives."

"Any attempt to violate this basic principle undermines the partnership between the United States and Kosovo."

Meanwhile, the European Union expressed "serious concern" over the CEC's failure to approve the final results for the Serbian List.

"The EU reiterates its call for the depoliticization of the work of the CEC, in line with the report of the EU Election Observation Mission, and calls on all parties to work together, in accordance with the Constitution," the EU spokesperson said in a response to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

He added that it is important that all elected candidates are able to take up their mandates in the Kosovo Assembly.

The Vetëvendosje movement of incumbent Prime Minister Albin Kurti, which won the December elections, had previously attempted to prevent the Serb List from participating in the elections. However, the ECAP has repeatedly overturned the CEC's decisions.

In the Kosovo Assembly, ten seats are reserved for the Serb community. The Serb List won nine in the December elections, while one was secured by Nenad Raši? from the Party for Freedom, Justice and Survival.

The LVV is adamant in its position that the Serbian List is "an extended hand of Belgrade."

As one of the reasons why she does not want to cooperate with him, she cites the fact that she has never distanced herself from her former deputy mayor, Milan Radoi?i?, who took responsibility for the armed attack in Banjska in September 2023.

Kurti's party is open to cooperation with Rashiq and insists that positions in the Government or the Assembly of Kosovo, which by the Constitution belong to representatives of the Serbian community, be given to his party.

But, the Constitutional Court of Kosovo found last week that the deputy speaker of the Assembly from among the Serb community can only be appointed by the largest parliamentary party of this community, which in this case is the Serbian List.

Only after the deadline for appeals to the Supreme Court has passed can the CEC certify the election results, a process that paves the way for the formation of Kosovo's new institutions./REL