With fewer problems with voter lists in some places, all polls for local elections are open on time this morning, the chairman of the Central Election Commission, Valdete Daka, confirmed to KIM radio. The CEC president expects the elections to run regularly, especially in the north of Kosovo, where there are the biggest fears that an irregularity might occur.
President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, met today the chief of the European Union Election Observation Mission, Alojz Peterle, and discussed preparations for Sunday’s local elections. Thaci commended the EU’s readiness to monitor the elections which he said he believed would take place in a democratic manner.
Regional Police Directorate Mitrovica North would implement a special operational plan during the local elections on Sunday, 22 October with 450 police officers engaged, including entire commanding personnel, said Chief of the Regional Police Operations, Zeljko Bojovic, Kontakt plus radio reported.
Bojic also said that on-duty prosecutors would be placed in all police stations, while police officers would be present at the polling stations, as of 3.00 a.m. on Sunday, Kontakt plus radio reported.
“We hope the elections would run peacefully and regularly,” said the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, that would have its members present in the four northern municipalities in Kosovo, RTV KiM reported.
The OSCE Mission in Kosovo would have 220 people present in the four northern municipalities of Mitrovica North, Zvecan, Zubin Potok and Leposavic, OSCE Spokesperson, Senad Sabovic said to RTV KiM.
“The framework and the format would remain the same as in June 2017. Everything is ready from our side, all technical preparations and training of the personnel were done,” he added.
“I think we have managed to get to the people and convince them there is a hope for us, there is a perspective to remain here, because these people are the most important,” said Nenad Rasic, leader of the Progressive Democratic Party (PDS), KIM Radio reported.
The PDS would conclude its election campaign today. The party did not have a candidate for a mayor in Gracanica, but only for the municipal assembly. The campaign was led calmly and with direct talks to the citizens.
President of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), Ivica Dacic called upon Serbs in Kosovo and internally displaced persons eligible to vote, to participate in local elections on 22 October and vote for Srpska Lista, Serbian media reported.
Dacic said these elections are of great importance to the Serb people and decisive about their destiny in Kosovo.
Only eight Kosovar women are representing about 50 per cent of the population in the local elections of 2017.
At only three per cent of all mayoral candidates in Kosovo’s upcoming local elections, eight Kosovar women are proposing measures that they promise to implement if they are trusted with the citizens’ votes on October 22.
The Law on Gender Equality foresees that candidate lists should represent both genders equally, and before the elections, the Kosovo Ombudsperson emphasized that the candidate lists should reflect that.
The campaign for the local elections in Kosovo's 38 municipalities draws to a close on Friday at midnight as citizens get ready to vote on Sunday.
Kosovo marks the last day of the local election campaign on Friday, as it prepares for Sunday’s elections, now being held for the second time since 2013 also in the northern Serb-majority towns.
Serbian side would be ready tomorrow for the creation of a new court and new prosecution with Serb majority in the north of Kosovo, which is a delay of two or three days and therefore Serbia would be ready to fully implement obligations related to the agreement on judiciary, the Serbian Government Office for Kosovo Director, Marko Djuric said to Tanjug.
“On the occasion of the upcoming local elections, that are being held under the Constitution and the laws of the separatist authorities in Pristina, National Movement of Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija “Fatherland” calls on all Serbs throughout the southern Serbian province to boycott these elections,” reported NSPM.