The Central Election Commission (CEC) is nearing the completion of the vote-counting process for all ballots cast in the early parliamentary elections held on December 28 for the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo.
This was announced by the CEC Spokesperson, Valmir Elezi, during a press conference from the Counting and Results Center, where the counting of postal votes is still ongoing.
“The Central Election Commission is currently counting the final portion of ballots from out-of-Kosovo voting, specifically voting by mail, and at the same time approaching the completion of the overall vote-counting process for all ballots from the early elections for the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo held on December 28, 2025. At this moment, the Counting and Results Center is continuing with the counting of the second batch of ballots from voting abroad, namely voting by mail,” Elezi stated.
Elezi further explained that the second batch of postal ballots that have so far arrived in Kosovo is currently being counted, while more than 3,000 additional ballot packages are still expected to arrive.
“In the continuation of the counting process, ballots from postal voting collected on January 2 and January 5, 2026, from mailboxes abroad and already brought to Kosovo will be included. On January 2, from nine mailboxes located in Prague, London, Paris, Zagreb, Stockholm, Istanbul, New York, Canberra, and Copenhagen, an additional 8,180 ballot packages were collected. Meanwhile, on January 5, from 13 mailboxes in Tirana, Berlin, Vienna, Bern, Brussels, The Hague, Podgorica, Oslo, Skopje, Ottawa, Ljubljana, Rome, and Pristina, 11,867 ballot packages were collected. To date, the majority of these packages have been delivered to Kosovo and subjected to verification and evaluation. Approximately 16,000 of them have been approved and are currently being counted. A total of 3,185 ballot packages collected on January 2 and 5 have not yet arrived in Kosovo, originating from Paris (1,962), Berlin (633), The Hague (61), Podgorica (125), and Ottawa (404),” Elezi said.
When asked about the announcement of final results, Elezi clarified that once the counting of these ballots is completed, the CEC will be ready to announce the final election results. However, under the Law on General Elections, the institution must first allow time for potential complaints related to the administration of the counting process at the Counting and Results Center.
“Upon completion of the counting of these ballots, the CEC is ready to announce the final results of the early elections held on December 28. However, according to the Law on General Elections, parties may submit complaints to the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel (ECAP) regarding the administration of the counting process at the CRC within 48 hours from the occurrence of the alleged violation,” Elezi explained.
He also outlined the procedural steps required before the final results can be declared, noting that most of them have already been completed.
“The CEC announces final results only after the completion of the following processes: (1) verification and counting of results at Municipal Counting Centers, which has already been concluded; (2) counting at the Counting and Results Center of ballots from conditional voting and voters with special needs, which has also been completed; (3) counting of ballots from voting outside Kosovo, which is in its final stage; and (4) the completion of the review of any potential complaints by the ECAP or the Supreme Court related to the administration of the counting process,” Elezi added.
