The municipal elections in Kosovo on were not really local, and come down to two very different stories depending on whether one looks at the Serb-held northern region or the rest of the country. These were not ordinary elections: they were meant to mark a peaceful transfer of power over northern Kosovo, from Serbia to the Kosovo government in Pristina. Their failure is a serious warning sign. The municipal elections in Kosovo on 3 November were not really local, and come down to two very different stories depending on whether one looks at the Serb-held northern region or the rest of the country. In the government-controlled south, Election Day was inspirational as all communities turned out heavily and peacefully. North of the Ibar river, the elections were tragic, with hubris and assorted other flaws leading to a day ending in violence and confusion. These were not ordinary elections: they were meant to mark a peaceful transfer of power over northern Kosovo, from Serbia to the Kosovo government in Pristina. Their failure is a serious warning sign.
Serbs in municipalities south of the Ibar river, voting in their second local election under Kosovo law, turned out in numbers that are indistinguishable from the majority Albanian population around them. Voting in Kosovo-run elections is no longer an issue for the southern Serb community.
The Belgrade-backed “Srpska” citizens’ initiative did well in Serb-majority areas but not as well as it hoped, and all its mayoral candidates will have to compete in a second run-off round on 1 December. In some areas, such as Parteš, the incumbent Independent Liberal Party (SLS) held the lead against Srpska. But the overall pattern south of the Ibar is fragmentation and coalition-building; the days of one-party dominance are over.
A looming wave of Serb refugee voters turned into a ripple outside of Serb-majority areas, and hardly any bothered to vote in the places they used to live. If Belgrade planned to inject itself into Kosovo politics through the refugee vote, it has failed.
Full Article: Unfree And Unfair In Northern Kosovo – OpEd Eurasia Review.
