PRISTINA – Kosovo’s Constitutional Court ordered President Vjosa Osmani on Monday not to set a snap election date before March 31, deepening the Balkan nation’s political paralysis after parliament’s dissolution last Friday.
Osmani ended the legislative session without naming a poll day, following lawmakers’ failure to select a new head of state by Thursday’s constitutional cutoff. The ruling also halts parliament’s presidential election push until month’s end, prolonging Europe’s youngest country’s instability.
The decision stems from Prime Minister Albin Kurti’s challenge, once Osmani’s ally, he withheld support for her rebid in the ceremonial post. Kurti’s administration endorsed the verdict but lamented a three-week limbo stalling key citizen-focused agreements needing assembly approval.
No government operated for much of last year as a splintered parliament couldn’t name a speaker. Presidential picks demand two-thirds attendance, inviting easy sabotage despite the role’s limited powers. A prospective vote would mark Kosovo’s third in little over a year, as EU ambitions hang in the balance.