2023 Kosovan local elections

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Local elections were held in four municipalities in the north of Kosovo on 23 April 2023.[1] They were initially scheduled to be held in December 2022, but were subsequently postponed.[2] The elections were held in the four Serb-majority municipalities of Leposavić, North Mitrovica, Zubin Potok and Zvečan, located in North Kosovo.[3] The elections were boycotted by the biggest Serb political party in Kosovo, the Serb List, following its departure from Kosovan institutions and the resignation of their mayors in North Kosovo in November.[4][5] Among the declared candidates, there were only two Serbs. Aleksandar Arsenijević, candidate for mayor of the North Mitrovica Municipality, withdrew his candidacy on 2 December.[6][7] Only the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and Vetëvendosje (LVV) had mayoral candidates in all four municipalities.[8] Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani had initially set 25 December as the polling date for the municipal assemblies of Zvečan and Leposavić in the north of Kosovo.[9] On 20 April, candidate for mayor of the Leposavić Municipality Aleksandar Jablanović, leader of the Party of Kosovo Serbs (PKS), withdrew his candidature for running in the elections.

The elections were overshadowed by a boycott of Serbian parties and an extremely low turnout. Only 3.47% of the eligible 45,095 voted: 1,566 of them were Albanians and only 13 were Serbs. All elected heads of municipalities with a predominant Serbian majority are Albanians.[10][11] This election recorded one of the lowest turnouts ever.

  1. ^ "Kosovo delays local election in Serbian majority areas – DW – 12/10/2022". dw.com. Retrieved 2022-12-13.
  2. ^ "Predsednica raspisala izbore na severu Kosova 18. decembra". Radio Slobodna Evropa (in Serbo-Croatian). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  3. ^ "Izbori na severu Kosova raspisani za 18. decembar". BBC News na srpskom (in Serbian (Latin script)). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  4. ^ "Sve srpske partije bojkutuju lokalne izbore na severu Kosova". Radio Slobodna Evropa (in Serbo-Croatian). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  5. ^ "Neki bojkotuju, neki najavljuju izlazak, a neki i ćute: Moguća promena odluke Srpske liste - Politika - Dnevni list Danas" (in Serbian). 2022-11-23. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  6. ^ "Aleksandar Arsenijević (Srpski opstanak) povukao kandidaturu za gradonačelnika Severne Mitrovice - Politika - Dnevni list Danas" (in Serbian). 2022-12-02. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
  7. ^ Kosovo Online (2022-12-05). "CIK potvrdila da je Arsenijević povukao kandidaturu za gradonačelnika Severne Mitrovice" (in Serbian). Retrieved 2022-12-05.
  8. ^ KoSSev (2022-11-28). "CIK overio prijave za izbore na Severu, objavljena imena kandidata". KoSSev (in Serbian). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  9. ^ "Izbori za Skupštine opština Zvečan i Leposavić 25. decembra". Radio KiM (in Serbian). Retrieved 2022-12-03.
  10. ^ "Petković: Na izbore na severu Kosova izašlo 3,47 odsto birača – samo 13 Srba". Kosovo Online. 23 April 2023.
  11. ^ "Preliminary Results: Vetëvendosje and PDK candidates Win Snap Elections in Northern Municipalities". Prishtina Insight. 2023-04-23. Retrieved 2023-04-23.