Kosovo court rules presidential vote illegal
Judges say election of businessman Behgjet Pacolli to presidency was unconstitutional.
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| Pacolli, right, is unpopular with many of Kosovo’s Albanians because of his close ties to Moscow [Reuters] |
Kosovo’s top court has ruled that last month’s election of Behgjet Pacolli, Kosovo’s president, was unconstitutional.
The nine-member constitutional court ruled 7-2 on Monday in support of a complaint by opposition party members, who said that Pacolli’s election last month breached the constitution.
The court gave no further information about its decision. It was not immediately clear if there could be another vote in parliament to name Pacolli as president or if he would have to resign.
Fatmir Sejdiu, the former president, resigned in September after the same court said he violated the constitution by also serving as a party leader.
His resignation led to the fall of the government and early elections in December.
Kosovo’s parliament elected Pacolli with a slight majority on February 22 following an opposition walkout that left only 67 deputies present in the 120-seat body.
The complaint against the election was brought before the court by the opposition Democratic League of Kosovo and supported by the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo.
Pacolli, a multi-millionaire businessman, is unpopular with many of Kosovo’s Albanians, largely because of his close business ties with Moscow, which backs Serbia in opposing Kosovo’s independence.