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Barely eight months after the last vote, Kosovars have to vote again. According to the ruling of the highest court, the election of the government of Avdullah Hoti (45) of the conservative Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) on June 3, 2020 was only possible thanks to the vote of a member who, according to the constitution, should not have been in parliament.
Therefore, there will be a new election on Sunday. Thousands of Kosovars from Switzerland and Germany made their way to their former homeland to be there and cast their votes. They traveled the 2,000 kilometers by bus or plane.
Almost 30 flights from Switzerland to Kosovo
“Unlike the previous elections, the Albanian diaspora is better organized than ever, so that tomorrow it will vote despite the obstacles,” wrote the Swiss online portal “Le Canton27.ch” on Saturday and was satisfied with the mobilization. .
Based on information from tour operators, the Albanian-language portal has estimated that more than 10,000 Kosovars from Switzerland traveled to Kosovo on February 14, which is so important to them. A total of around 30 flights (price per seat around CHF 1,000) and more than 300 buses took off, and hundreds of cars made the trip individually. “Today the diaspora votes for a state that works and for democracy!” He writes “Le Canton27.ch” with confidence.
Flights from Germany, Austria, Turkey, Sweden and Belgium have also arrived in Pristina, the portal continues. “Thousands of cars and buses full of Albanians” were seen on the Serbian-Croatian border.
Great expectation for the election
To underscore the euphoria, “Le Canton27.ch” published images of buses and planes with German and Swiss Kosovars who are looking forward to the elections.
Around 113,000 people with Kosovar citizenship live in Switzerland. However, the number of people in this country who come from the youngest state in Europe is more than double: around 250,000 of the inhabitants name Albanian as their main language.
As BLICK has already reported, the Swiss flag was flying in the streets of Pristina, Gilan, Vitia and other cities these days. This “out of respect” for the country in which members of the diaspora live and work.
The parliamentary elections in Kosovo began this Sunday at 7 am Around 1.8 million citizens are called to cast their vote. The early voting was necessary because the last government had been produced through an illegal election in parliament following a ruling by the Constitutional Court.
Opinion polls see the left-wing Vetevendosje movement clearly in the lead. Vetevendosje means self-determination, supporters can be recognized by signs with the inscription “V” or the referendum number “127”.
However, Vetevendosje president Albin Kurti was removed from the list of candidates by the electoral commission. A court sentenced him to a suspended sentence in 2018 for a tear gas attack in parliament.
Kurti was prime minister from February to June 2020. He then lost office to Avdullah Hoti of the conservative Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK). If Vetevendosje wins the elections, Kurti wants to be head of government again.
Polling stations close at 7 pm Partial results are expected late in the afternoon. (SDA)
