Kosovo Parliament approves Albin Kurti’s new Government with 62 Votes
Albin Kurti secures the narrow parliamentary majority required to form his fourth government, ending months of executive uncertainty while unveiling an ambitious programme focused on production, social policy, infrastructure, security and European integration.
Kosovo’s Assembly approved a new government led by Albin Kurti on September 13, 2026, giving the Vetëvendosje leader another mandate as prime minister after months of political uncertainty. The cabinet secured a narrow majority (shumicë) of 62 votes in the 120-seat parliament. Eight MPs voted against the new government, while there were no abstentions (abstenime) among the 70 deputies participating in the vote. The result provided Kurti with the minimum parliamentary threshold (prag) needed to establish his new executive.
The extraordinary parliamentary session followed an earlier meeting on the same day concerning the formal constitution of Kosovo’s 11th legislature. Assembly Speaker Albulena Haxhiu declared Parliament constituted (konstituuar) even though a deputy-speaker position belonging to the Democratic Party of Kosovo remained unfilled. Vetëvendosje then formally proposed Kurti as the prime-minister-designate (mandatar për kryeministër). Haxhiu subsequently gave him the mandate (mandat) to present a government to Parliament later that afternoon.
The vote revealed how narrow Kurti’s governing majority remained. Vetëvendosje controlled 53 seats and therefore required additional support (mbështetje) from representatives of non-majority communities. Nine such MPs ultimately helped provide the necessary parliamentary arithmetic (aritmetikë parlamentare) for the government to reach 62 votes. Eight Serbian List deputies who participated in the session formed the principal opposition bloc (bllok kundërshtues) inside the chamber and voted against the cabinet.
Kosovo’s principal Albanian opposition parties did not participate in the government vote. MPs representing the Democratic Party of Kosovo, Democratic League of Kosovo and Alliance for the Future of Kosovo were absent (munguan) from the extraordinary session. Their absence reflected continuing disagreement over the constitutional legitimacy (legjitimitet) of the parliamentary procedures preceding the vote. The boycott therefore prevented the formation of a broader political consensus (konsensus) around the new executive.
The government was sworn in immediately after receiving parliamentary approval. Kurti presented the vote as a return to institutional functionality (funksionalitet) following repeated electoral and parliamentary disputes. He described the new term as a continuation of work that had been unnecessarily interrupted (ndërprerë) by political instability. The government’s central promise, he said, would be public service (shërbim) rather than privilege for a small political or economic group.
The September vote followed the parliamentary election held on June 7, 2026, in which Vetëvendosje again emerged as the largest political force. The election nevertheless failed to give Kurti an outright majority (shumicë absolute) of seats. Forming a government therefore required additional coalition-building (ndërtim koalicioni) with MPs representing smaller communities. Kosovo’s repeated elections had created substantial public fatigue (lodhje politike) and pressure on political parties to restore functioning institutions.
In his parliamentary programme, Kurti placed economic production at the centre of his new government’s strategy. He described domestic manufacturing as the foundation (themel) of Kosovo’s future economic development. A planned Development Bank would provide additional financing (financim) for strategic projects and small and medium-sized businesses. The government also proposed a €1 billion industrial programme intended to increase productive capacity (kapacitet prodhues) and support companies creating jobs and exports.
Kurti also proposed significant changes to taxation and business regulation. The government intends to introduce electronic invoicing between companies and strengthen real-time tax monitoring (monitorim). It also plans faster VAT reimbursements (rimbursime) and the abolition of the 10 percent customs duty on vehicles imported from the European Union. A planned price-cap law would meanwhile seek to limit abusive commercial margins (marzhe) in sectors where consumers face unusually high prices.
Public transportation forms another distinctive part of the programme. Through the planned “Anembanë” initiative, Kosovo would develop an integrated national transport network (rrjet) connecting municipal and interurban services. Kurti proposed a heavily subsidised monthly pass (abone) with a target price of €10. The system is intended to improve geographical mobility (lëvizshmëri) while reducing transport costs for workers, students and other citizens.
Tourism and infrastructure also occupy important positions in the government’s four-year plan. Kurti proposed investments of up to €500 million in the Brezovica tourism development (zhvillim) project, including roads, hotels, ski facilities and cable cars. The government also wants greater investment in mountain and ecological tourism (turizëm) around Peja, Rugova and the Sharr region. These projects are presented as instruments of regional economic revitalisation (rigjallërim) rather than tourism developments operating in isolation.
Kosovo’s diaspora features prominently in the government’s economic strategy. A proposed Diaspora Investment Window would provide up to €100 million in state-backed guarantees (garanci) for investments made by Kosovars living abroad. The government also expects participation in SEPA to reduce the cost of international remittances (dërgesa parash) substantially. Digital consular services and simplified citizenship rules are intended to reinforce the diaspora’s long-term connection (lidhje) with Kosovo.
Kurti’s labour policy contains some of the programme’s most politically ambitious promises. The government intends to promote a 13th-month salary (pagë) across both the public and private sectors after introducing such a payment in the public sector during 2026. Kurti said the longer-term objective could eventually involve a 14th-month payment, although implementation would require consultation with employers and workers (punëtorë). A new Social Insurance Fund is also planned to strengthen protection against unemployment and provide maternity and parental benefits (përfitime).
Education policy combines social assistance with changes to the structure of schooling. University education at public institutions remains free, while the government intends to double its scholarship budget (buxhet bursash) during the new mandate. Teacher licensing would become more advanced and could be linked with higher remuneration (shpërblim financiar). Full-day schooling would expand art, sport and digital education while providing more specialised support (mbështetje) for children with additional educational needs.
Healthcare was similarly described as one of the government’s principal priorities. Kurti promised that every citizen would eventually have access to a designated family doctor (mjek familjar) through the primary-care system. Regular cancer screening (depistim) would be expanded for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer. Greater emphasis on preventive medicine (mjekësi parandaluese) is intended to identify illnesses earlier rather than concentrating resources almost exclusively on treatment after disease becomes advanced.
Agriculture will continue receiving large-scale public support under the new government. Kurti said more than 150,000 farmers had already benefited from approximately €350 million in grants and subsidies (subvencione) during his previous periods in office. The new programme proposes agricultural insurance (sigurim bujqësor) against natural disasters and greater support for machinery, irrigation, greenhouses and livestock. Certification and product standardisation (standardizim) are intended to help Kosovo producers compete more effectively in domestic and European markets.
Transport infrastructure represents another major area of promised investment. The government intends to begin development of the Gjakova–Shkodra railway as part of a broader Pristina–Durrës rail corridor (korridor). Additional rail projects would improve connectivity (lidhshmëri) between Prizren, Ferizaj, Gjilan, Bujanoc and Pristina Airport. Major road schemes are also intended to strengthen regional integration (integrim) with Albania and North Macedonia while improving internal transport between Kosovo’s municipalities.
Public procurement is expected to undergo significant reform because slow tender procedures have repeatedly delayed capital projects. Kurti promised faster and more competitive (konkurruese) procurement while maintaining stronger transparency. Linking public finances directly with electronic procurement should strengthen fiscal discipline (disiplinë fiskale) and prevent commitments for which sufficient money has not been allocated. The government wants annual capital-investment execution (realizim) eventually to exceed €1 billion.
Justice reform remains another defining area of the Kurti programme. The government intends to continue pursuing judicial vetting (verifikim) within constitutional limits. It also plans stronger mechanisms for the confiscation (konfiskim) of unjustifiable wealth and a specialised prosecution structure for organised crime and corruption. Further judicial digitalisation (digjitalizim) would allow court filings and proceedings to move increasingly toward electronic systems.
Police and internal security policy will receive substantial attention as well. Kurti promised modern equipment, more specialised police training (trajnim) and refurbished stations across Kosovo. The government intends to expand drone and counter-drone (kundër-dron) capabilities and establish a specialised Gendarmerie of Kosovo. That force would be responsible for high-risk operations (operacione), border security, counterterrorism and protection of critical infrastructure.
Defence spending will rise substantially under the proposed programme. Kurti said more than €1 billion would be allocated to the Kosovo Security Force over the next four years as part of a broader military modernisation (modernizim) effort. The government also wants to develop a domestic defence industry (industri mbrojtëse) producing ammunition, drones, robotic systems and other technologies under a “Made in Kosova” concept. Expanding bilateral security agreements and defence diplomacy would provide greater international interoperability (ndërveprueshmëri) with partner countries.
European integration remains one of the government’s central foreign-policy objectives. Kurti said Kosovo aims to complete important EU integration chapters (kapituj) by 2030 and deepen alignment with the European internal market. The Reform Agenda for 2025–2028 is expected to provide an important framework (kuadër) for obtaining European financial assistance. Kosovo will also maintain foreign-policy alignment (përafrim) with the European Union while participating in the Berlin Process and Common Regional Market.
The composition of the new cabinet reflects both continuity and some important changes. Glauk Konjufca became First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, giving him one of the government’s most senior portfolios (portofol) after years in parliamentary leadership. Donika Gërvalla became Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice, combining executive seniority (pozitë e lartë) with responsibility for legal reforms. Fikrim Damka became Third Deputy Prime Minister for Minority Affairs and Cooperation, reinforcing formal minority representation (përfaqësim) at the highest level of government.
Other important ministers include Hekuran Murati at Finance, Ejup Maqedonci at Defence and Xhelal Sveçla at Internal Affairs. Arben Vitia remained responsible for healthcare (kujdes shëndetësor), while Hajrulla Çeku took the education portfolio. Saranda Bogujevci became responsible for culture and tourism (turizëm), and Artane Rizvanolli continued at Economy. The overall cabinet therefore combines substantial continuity (vazhdimësi) with a reorganisation of several ministries and responsibilities.
The new government nevertheless took office amid an immediate constitutional controversy. Opposition parties argued that Parliament should not have been declared properly constituted (konstituuar) before election of the deputy speaker allocated to PDK. PDK and AAK announced challenges before the Constitutional Court, questioning both the parliamentary procedure and the government’s legitimacy (legjitimitet). Their objections created an additional layer of institutional uncertainty (pasiguri) immediately after Kurti received the 62 votes required to govern.
That legal controversy was substantially clarified on September 23. Kosovo’s Constitutional Court concluded that formation of the Kurti government was not unconstitutional (antikushtetuese), although it found that Parliament had completed its constitutive process after the prescribed deadline. The ruling therefore preserved the government’s legal validity (vlefshmëri) while identifying deficiencies in the preceding parliamentary timetable. It provided Kurti with important constitutional certainty (siguri juridike) after the opposition’s challenge.
The government vote also occurred while Kosovo still faced uncertainty over election of a new president. At the time, Vetëvendosje and LDK had attempted to develop a broader political agreement (marrëveshje) around presidential candidate Bekim Sejdiu. Dissension among LDK MPs made the required two-thirds parliamentary majority (shumicë e cilësuar) difficult to achieve. Failure to resolve the presidency risked renewed institutional deadlock (ngërç institucional) only weeks after the new government had finally been approved.
For Kosovo’s European ambitions, establishing a functioning government was especially important because prolonged political instability had delayed reforms and European financing. Brussels has repeatedly emphasised the importance of stable institutions (institucione) capable of implementing agreed reforms. Political paralysis can delay access to European funding (financim) and slow implementation of legislation required for closer integration. Institutional stability (stabilitet) is therefore not simply a domestic political concern but an important condition for Kosovo’s international objectives.
The September 13 vote consequently ended one phase of Kosovo’s political crisis without immediately resolving every institutional dispute. Kurti obtained the parliamentary confidence (besim parlamentar) necessary to begin governing with a narrow majority. His ambitious programme creates substantial expectations (pritshmëri) across economic, social, infrastructure and security policy. The decisive test will be whether a government dependent on only 62 votes can maintain sufficient parliamentary cohesion (kohezion) to transform those promises into legislation and practical results over the coming years.
Key Albanian Vocabulary
shumicë majority
abstenime abstentions
prag threshold
konstituuar constituted
mandatar për kryeministër prime-minister-designate
mandat mandate
mbështetje support
aritmetikë parlamentare parliamentary arithmetic
bllok kundërshtues opposition bloc
munguan absent
legjitimitet legitimacy
konsensus consensus
funksionalitet functionality
ndërprerë interrupted
shërbim service
shumicë absolute majority
ndërtim koalicioni coalition-building
lodhje politike fatigue
themel foundation
financim financing
kapacitet prodhues capacity
monitorim monitoring
rimbursime reimbursements
marzhe margins
rrjet network
abone pass
lëvizshmëri mobility
zhvillim development
turizëm tourism
rigjallërim revitalisation
garanci guarantees
dërgesa parash remittances
lidhje connection
pagë salary
punëtorë workers
përfitime benefits
buxhet bursash budget
shpërblim financiar remuneration
mjek familjar doctor
depistim screening
mjekësi parandaluese medicine
subvencione subsidies
sigurim bujqësor insurance
standardizim standardisation
korridor corridor
lidhshmëri connectivity
integrim integration
konkurruese competitive
disiplinë fiskale discipline
realizim execution
verifikim vetting
konfiskim confiscation
digjitalizim digitalisation
trajnim training
kundër-dron counter-drone
operacione operations
modernizim modernisation
industri mbrojtëse industry
ndërveprueshmëri interoperability
kapituj chapters
kuadër framework
përafrim alignment
portofol portfolios
pozitë e lartë seniority
përfaqësim representation
kujdes shëndetësor healthcare
vazhdimësi continuity
pasiguri uncertainty
antikushtetuese unconstitutional
vlefshmëri validity
siguri juridike certainty
marrëveshje agreement
shumicë e cilësuar majority
ngërç institucional deadlock
institucione institutions
stabilitet stability
besim parlamentar confidence
pritshmëri expectations
kohezion cohesion
