Kosovo’s Constitutional Court has found that the election of the coalition government led by Avdullah Hoti, elected on June 3, was unconstitutional, ruling that it did not receive the mandatory 61 votes of Kosovo MPs. Furthermore, the decision foresees that fresh elections should take place within 40 days of the President’s announcement of the decision.

The decision states that “taking into account that the Government was not elected according to paragraph 3 of Article 95 [Election of the Government] of the Constitution, then based on paragraph 4 of Article 95 [Election of the Government] of the Constitution, the President of the Republic of Kosovo announces elections which must be held no later than forty (40) days from the day of their promulgation.”

The Hoti Government was elected by the Kosovo Assembly on June 3, with a majority of one vote. Vetevendosje submitted a complaint on June 11 regarding the validity of the vote due to the legal status of MP Etem Arifi, who voted for the coalition government and was sentenced on September 29, 2019 on charges of corruption.

The Constitutional Court has accepted Vetevendosje’s complaint, stating in Point II of its decision that a person convicted of a criminal offense in the three years prior can not be a candidate for deputy, or win a valid mandate in the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo.

The court added that this means that the Government was not elected according to the Kosovo Constitution, and that the President of Kosovo should announce an election, which must be held no later than 40 days following its promulgation.