PRISTINA, Kosovo -- A coalition of former ethnic Albanian rebel commanders won the most votes Sunday in Kosovo's general election, which also saw a surge in popularity for a nationalist party, according to preliminary results.

The ex-rebels came in first with about 35 percent of the vote. The nationalist Self-Determination Movement was neck-and-neck with the coalition led by former Prime Minister Isa Mustafa, with about 26 percent each after the counting of about 70 percent of the votes, according to Democracy in Action, a monitoring group.

Based on the early results, it's likely that any group would need to form a larger coalition in order to govern.

The new Cabinet will have a tough job in resolving several issues, including the border demarcation deal with Montenegro. The approval of an agreement with Serbia, giving more rights to the ethnic Serb minority, and the continuation of fraught talks with Belgrade, which denies Kosovo's existence as a state, were also key concerns.

Ramush Haradinaj, whom the leading coalition has nominated to be prime minister, hailed Kosovars "for the trust given to the coalition," adding, "these are the best elections ever held" in Kosovo.

"The victory is convincing and [makes] us capable of operating further to create the country's government," he said.

The final results for the 120-seat parliament are expected later in the week. Ethnic Serbs and other minority groups have 20 seats.

Self-Determination Movement officials celebrated the results, which saw the party double its share of the vote. The party was a disruptive force in the previous parliament and is the biggest opposition party to shun pre-election coalitions. The party's members and supporters in the past have released tear gas inside parliament and thrown firebombs outside it to protest the contentious deals with Montenegro and Serbia.

The party has nominated its former leader, 42-year-old Albin Kurti, for prime minister.

The party says it "is the only one which is going to fight corruption in a successful way," send former officials to jail, and end the current talks with Serbia while seeking a closer union with neighboring Albania.

Kosovo's election authorities said preliminary figures put turnout in the country's general election at 41.79 percent.

Central Election Commission head Valdete Daka said that "there have been no problems that would gravely damage the process." </s> SKOPJE, Macedonia — For the third time since Kosovo declared its independence in 2008, voters elected a new Parliament on Sunday, likely giving power to a former rebel leader who was twice acquitted of war crimes by an international tribunal.

With around 80 percent of the votes tallied, a coalition of parties featuring the Democratic Party of Kosovo appeared to win the most votes and will seek to establish a government led by Ramush Haradinaj, a former prime minister and once a leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army, which fought a war for independence from Serbia in the late 1990s.

According to preliminary results released by the Kosovo election commission, the Democratic Party of Kosovo, or P.D.K., won 35 percent, beating the ruling Democratic League of Kosovo and the Self-Determination Party, each with around 25 percent.

Without a clear majority, the leading party must form a coalition to establish a government. There are 20 seats reserved for ethnic minority parties, including 10 seats for Serbs. </s> PRISTINA, June 11 (Reuters) - A coalition led by the ruling centre-right Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) is set to win Kosovo's snap parliamentary election on Sunday, according to exit polls.

The television station Kosova Klan published exit polls giving the PDK-led coalition 40 percent, the Vetevendosje (VV) party 30 percent, and a coalition led by the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) 27 percent.

First preliminary results are due to come later in the evening.

About 1.9 million Kosovars, nearly half a million of whom live abroad, were registered to vote in the third election since Kosovo declared independence in 2008.

The state election commission put the turnout at 41.5 percent, compared to 43 percent at the last election in 2014.

"Voters showed they trust our coalition," Ramush Haradinaj, the PDK-led coalition's candidate for prime minister, told a news conference. Haradinaj is a member of the small Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK).

"With this vote now, we are obliged to form the government, and we will do that."

The new government will have to tackle unemployment running at 30 percent and improve relations with Kosovo's neighbours, especially Serbia, a precondition for both countries to move forward in the European Union accession process.

The West sees the integration of the Western Balkan countries into the European Union as a way to stabilise a region still recovering from wars in the 1990s.

Early elections were called in May when the government of Prime Minister Isa Mustafa lost a no-confidence vote, accused by the opposition of failing to meet pledges to improve the lives of the youngest population in Europe.

"Those who were in power should not come again, they are incriminated too much. They want to stay because they have created a lot of privileges for themselves," said Hasan Visoka, 62, after voting in a school in the capital, Pristina.

"Nothing will change. It doesn't matter who comes to power, we'll continue to be poor, without a future," Arta Kelmendi, 28, said after voting.

But if Haradinaj does become prime minister, it will probably complicate relations with Serbia, which has issued an international warrant for his arrest on war crimes charges.

The new government will also have to try to strike a border demarcation deal with Montenegro, which is the last condition for the European Union to grant visa-free travel for Kosovars.

Kosovo's neighbours Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia have all already secured visa-free travel to EU member states.

Kosovo's economy has been growing steadily and is forecast to expand by about 4 percent in 2017, but the growth is mainly down to remittances from a million or so Kosovars living abroad.

Kosovo declared independence in 2008, nine years after NATO bombing drove out Serbian forces accused of killing and expelling Kosovo Albanian civilians as Serbia tried to put down an ethnic Albanian insurgency. Serbia still refuses to recognise Kosovo's independence. (Editing by Ivana Sekularac and Kevin Liffey) </s> BELGRADE (Sputnik) – The center-right coalition brings together of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), which is close to Kosovo President Hashim Thaci and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) of Ramush Haradinaj, the country’s prime minister candidate and former prime minister.

On Sunday, the citizens of breakaway Kosovo were casting ballots to express support to the preferred political bloc, out of the total of 26 parties and alliances. Kosovo parliament encompasses the total of 120 seats and 20 of them are reserved for the representatives of the ethnic minorities.

On May 10, the Kosovo Assembly voted to dismiss the government of Mustafa in a no-confidence motion, as the current government failed to implement political pledges. The initiative passed with 78 votes in favor, 34 against and three abstentions, paving the way for a snap election. Following the vote, Thaci dissolved the parliament and on May 11, set the date for the early vote. </s> PRISTINA, Kosovo >> The coalition of former ethnic Albanian rebel commanders won the most votes Sunday in Kosovo’s general election, which also saw a surge in popularity for a nationalist party, according to preliminary results.

The ex-rebels came in first with around 35 percent of the vote. The nationalist Self-Determination Movement was neck-and-neck with the coalition led by former Prime Minister Isa Mustafa, which had around 26 percent each after the counting of about 70 percent of the votes, according to Democracy in Action, a monitoring group.

No group can govern alone and coalitions will be likely.

The new Cabinet will have a tough job in resolving several thorny issues, including the border demarcation deal with Montenegro. The approval of another agreement with Serbia giving more rights to the ethnic Serb minority, and the continuation of fraught talks with Belgrade, which denies Kosovo’s existence as a state, were also key concerns.

Ramush Haradinaj, whom the leading coalition has nominated to be prime minister, hailed Kosovars “for the trust given to the coalition,” adding “these are the best elections ever held” in Kosovo.

“The victory is convincing and make us capable of operating further to create the country’s government,” he said.

The final results for the new 120-seat parliament are expected later in the week. Ethnic Serbs and other minorities have 20 out of 120 seats in the parliament.

Self-Determination Movement officials celebrated the results, which saw the party double its share of the vote. The party has been a disruptive force in the previous parliament and is the biggest opposition party to shun pre-election coalitions. The party’s members and supporters released tear gas inside parliament and threw firebombs outside it to protest the contentious deals with Montenegro and Serbia.

The party has nominated its former leader, 42-year-old Albin Kurti, as a candidate for prime minister.

If elected, the party says it “is the only one which is going to fight corruption in a successful way,” send former officials to jail, end the current talks with Serbia while seeking a closer union with neighboring Albania.

Kosovo’s election authorities say that preliminary figures put turnout in the country’s general election at 41.79 percent.

Central Election Commission head Valdete Daka says that “there have been no problems that would gravely damage the process.”

The turnout is smaller than in the previous polls, for example in 2014, when it was 42.63 percent.

Kosovo is the only western Balkan country whose citizens need visas to enter the EU’s Schengen zone. To join, Brussels insists Kosovo’s parliament must first approve a border demarcation deal signed with Montenegro in 2015.

Opposition parties say that deal meant a loss of territory, over 8,000 hectares (20,000 acres), or less than 1 percent of Kosovo’s land. The former Cabinet, international experts and the country’s Western backers dispute that claim.

The Self-Determination Movement and others also oppose another deal signed in 2015 that gave more rights to the ethnic Serb minority.

A further issue is the prospect of former ethnic Albanian senior rebel commanders facing prosecution in the newly established war crimes court. The court in The Hague is expected to shortly issue indictments for crimes committed against civilians during and after the 1998-1999 war with Serbia. </s> PRISTINA -- The ruling center-right Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) was heading toward victory in the country's snap parliamentary elections, but it seems unlikely to win enough seats to govern even with its planned coalition partners.

The June 11 vote also confirmed the strong rise of the leftist Self-Determination Movement (VV) party, which nearly doubled its support since the last election and looked set to finish second in the overall vote.

With more than 90 percent of the ballots counted, the coalition headed by the PDK of President Hashim Thaci was leading with 34.65 percent of the vote, according to the Central Election Committee.

The PDK coalition includes former prime minister and rebel leader Ramush Haradinaj's Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK).

The nationalist VV, also known as Vetevendosje, had 26.59 percent of the vote, just ahead of a coalition led by outgoing Prime Minister Isa Mustafa's Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) with 25.82 percent.

If those results are borne out, no single group would be able to govern alone, making further coalition attempts likely.

Final distribution of seats is unlikely to come before June 12 or even later in the week, official have said. Turnout was put at 41.79 percent.

Albert Krasniqi from Democracy In Action, a coalition of nongovernmental organization monitoring the elections, said voting took place peacefully. The head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Jan Braathu, said the process “seems to be going smoothly.”

PDK and VV voters took to the streets to celebrate in Pristina, Kosovo's capital.

This was the country’s third election since it declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move recognized by 114 countries, but not by Serbia and Russia.

Haradinaj, the PDK-led coalition’s candidate for prime minister, declared victory during a press conference in Pristina, though he did not provide specific numbers.

"The coalition's victory is very convincing," he said.

WATCH: Voters in the town of Gracanica cast ballots in Kosovo's early parliamentary elections on June 11. Gracanica is the home to a medieval Serbian Orthodox monastery and is one of the centers of the Serb minority in Kosovo. (RFE/RL's Balkan Service)

The PDK coalition, with a large number of former guerrilla fighters, has been dubbed the "war wing" by Kosovo's media.

If Haradinaj does assume the prime minister role, it would complicate relations with neighboring Serbia, which has issued an international arrest warrant against him on suspicion of committing war crimes when he was a guerrilla fighter during Kosovo’s 1998-99 independence war.

Haradinaj, 48, has been tried twice and acquitted of war crimes at the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague. Haradinaj was elected prime minister of Kosovo in 2004 but resigned after 100 days in order to surrender himself for trial in The Hague. He has denied all charges.

His coalition and allies appeared unlikely to get the 51 seats in the 120-member parliament needed to govern.

Parliamentary rules reserve 20 seats for ethnic Serbs and other minorities. The PDK is looking to form a coalition with the 10 deputies representing the non-Serb minorities, including ethnic Turks and Roma.

Any new cabinet will have a tough job dealing with many problems facing the country, which is predominantly populated by ethnic Albanians.

Many of Kosovo's 1.8 million inhabitants blame politicians from all sides for a stubbornly high unemployment rate that hovers around one-third of the workforce despite solid economic expansion of about 4 percent annually in one of the poorest countries in Europe.

Other key priorities the next government faces include establishing better control over privatization and creating a functioning war crimes court and prosecution office, which would start the process of sidelining wartime leaders from political and public life.

Yet the biggest issues surrounding the vote are a pair of agreements signed in 2015: one setting the border with Montenegro and another with Serbia that increases powers held by ethnic Serbs in Kosovo.

Those issues have helped stalled reforms in the legislature and angered the electorate in a country where about one-third of the population is under the age of 15.

“For more than a year we didn't have a functional government, and now I don’t trust them,” said Islam Fehmiu, a retiree from the capital, Pristina.

“Parliament couldn't finish its sessions. I have very low hopes. The preelection coalitions are looking out only for their own interests and I absolutely think they won’t solve ongoing issues such as border demarcation with Montenegro,” Fehmiu added.

The election marked the rise of the Self-Determination Movement, which was a disruptive opposition force in the previous parliament and would make any coalition-building difficult. VV party supporters at one time released tear gas inside parliament and threw firebombs outside it to protest the deals with Montenegro and Serbia.



Albin Kurti, the party's candidate for prime minister, said the VV would fight corruption, jail former officials, end talks with Serbia, and seek a closer union with neighboring Albania.

With reporting by Alan Crosby and Amra Zejneli in Pristina, and Rikard Jozwiak in Brussels, AP, BBC, and Reuters </s> A senior European Union official has expressed hope that Kosovo will soon get a new government following snap parliamentary elections that left no party in a position to govern without what could be tough efforts to build a coalition.

"The outcome is definitely one which is not creating immediately a clear majority for a government, and I hope that it doesn't take again up to nine months as it was the case last time, because it is so important for this country to stay committed to reform," EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said in Brussels on June 12.

"For us it is crucial that the country and its representatives are committed to the European perspective," Hahn said, adding that "better living conditions [are] only achievable embedded into the European Union."

Preliminary results suggest the ruling center-right Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) won the most votes in the June 11 elections, but it appeared unlikely to have won enough seats to govern even with its planned coalition partners.

The vote also confirmed the strong rise of the nationalist Self-Determination Movement (VV) party, which nearly doubled its support since the last elections and looked set to finish second in the overall vote.

With more than 90 percent of the ballots counted, the coalition headed by the PDK of President Hashim Thaci was leading with 34.65 percent of the vote, according to the Central Election Commission. The PDK coalition includes former Prime Minister and rebel leader Ramush Haradinaj's Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK).

The nationalist VV, also known as Vetevendosje, had 26.59 percent of the vote, just ahead of a coalition led by outgoing Prime Minister Isa Mustafa's Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), which had 25.82 percent.

If those results are borne out, no single group would be able to govern alone, making further coalition attempts likely.

Turnout was put at 41.79 percent in Kosovo's third elections since it declared independence from Serbia in 2008. The country is recognized by 114 other countries but not by Serbia and Russia.

WATCH: Voters in the town of Gracanica cast ballots in Kosovo's early parliamentary elections on June 11. Gracanica is the home to a medieval Serbian Orthodox monastery and is one of the centers of the Serbian minority in Kosovo. (RFE/RL's Balkan Service)

Haradinaj, the PDK-led coalition's candidate for prime minister, declared victory, telling supporters at a rally in Pristina that "we know that there is a lot of work ahead of us. But we are going to achieve them together."

The PDK coalition, with a large number of former guerrilla fighters, has been dubbed the "war wing" by Kosovo's media.

If Haradinaj does assume the prime minister role, it would complicate relations with neighboring Serbia, which has issued an international arrest warrant against him on suspicion of committing war crimes when he was a guerrilla fighter during Kosovo's 1998-99 independence war.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said the victory of hard-liners in the elections will create "a lot of difficulties and problems," but added that the EU-mediated dialogue with Kosovo must continue.

Haradinaj, 48, has been tried twice and acquitted of war crimes at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague. Haradinaj was elected prime minister of Kosovo in 2004 but resigned after 100 days in order to surrender himself for trial in The Hague. He has denied all charges.

His coalition and allies appeared unlikely to get the 51 seats in the 120-member parliament needed to govern.

Parliamentary rules reserve 20 seats for ethnic Serbs and other minorities. The PDK is looking to form a coalition with the 10 deputies representing the non-Serbian minorities, including ethnic Turks and Roma.

Any new cabinet will have a tough job dealing with the many problems facing the country, which is predominantly populated by ethnic Albanians.

Many of Kosovo's 1.8 million inhabitants blame politicians from all sides for a stubbornly high unemployment rate that hovers around one-third of workforce despite solid economic expansion of about 4 percent annually in one of the poorest countries in Europe.

Other key priorities the next government faces include establishing better control over privatization and creating a functioning war crimes court and prosecution office, which would start the process of sidelining wartime leaders from political and public life.

Yet the biggest issues surrounding the vote are a pair of agreements signed in 2015: one setting the border with Montenegro and another with Serbia that increases powers held by ethnic Serbs in Kosovo.

Those issues have helped stall reforms in the legislature and angered the electorate in a country where about one-third of the population is under the age of 15.

"For more than a year we didn't have a functional government, and now I don't trust them," said Islam Fehmiu, a retiree from the capital, Pristina.

"Parliament couldn't finish its sessions. I have very low hopes. The preelection coalitions are looking out only for their own interests and I absolutely think they won't solve ongoing issues such as border demarcation with Montenegro," Fehmiu added.

The election marked the rise of the Self-Determination Movement, which was a disruptive opposition force in the previous parliament and would make any coalition-building difficult. VV supporters at one time released tear gas inside parliament and threw firebombs outside it to protest the deals with Montenegro and Serbia.

Albin Kurti, the party's candidate for prime minister, said the VV would fight corruption, jail former officials, end talks with Serbia, and seek a closer union with neighboring Albania.

With reporting by Alan Crosby, Amra Zejneli in Pristina, Rikard Jozwiak in Brussels, AP, BBC, and Reuters </s> The new government will have to tackle unemployment running at 30 percent and improve relations with its neighbours.

Voters in Kosovo have begun casting their ballots in a snap parliamentary election overshadowed by concerns over the economy and tensions with neighbouring Serbia.

Sunday's poll takes place a year early following the collapse of Prime Minister Isa Mustafa's cabinet last month, which ended Kosovo's first grand coalition.

About 1.9 million Kosovars, of which nearly half a million live abroad, are registered to vote in the third election since the country declared independence in 2008. Polling stations opened at 7am (05:00 GMT) and will close at 7pm (17:00).

Nineteen political parties, five coalitions and two citizens' initiatives, all promising to secure growth, have nominated candidates for the 120-seat parliament.

The new government will have to tackle unemployment running at 30 percent and improve relations with its neighbours, especially Serbia, a pre-condition for both countries to move forward in the European Union accession process.

Mustafa's government lost a no-confidence vote in March, accused by the opposition of failing to meet its pledges to improve the lives of the youngest population in Europe.

Opinion polls put a coalition led by former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj as the frontrunner.

His small Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) party signed a pre-election deal with the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), the biggest in the country and in power since 2007.

A victory for Haradinaj, however, would probably complicate relations with Serbia, which has issued an international warrant for his arrest for alleged war crimes.

A coalition led Mustafa's Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) and the leftist opposition party Vetevendosje (VV) which wants to unite all Albanians in one state are vying for second place in the vote, according to opinion polls.

In a calm election campaign, almost all the political parties promised to boost economic growth to up to eight percent a year and to raise public sector wages by up to 40 percent.

Kosovo's economy has been growing steadily and is forecast to expand around four percent in 2017 but the growth is mainly down to remittances from Kosovars living abroad.

The new government will also have to try to strike a border demarcation deal with Montenegro, which is the last condition for the EU to grant visa-free travel for Kosovars.

Neighbours Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia have already secured visa-free travel with EU member states.

Kosovo declared independence in 2008, nine years after NATO bombing drove out Serbian forces accused of killing and expelling Kosovo Albanian civilians during two years of clashes. Serbia still refuses to recognise its independence. </s> A coalition government is set as the next step after victories for Kosovo's 'war wing' alliance and main leftist party.

A coalition of former ethnic Albanian rebel commanders has won the most votes in Kosovo's general election but lacks an outright majority to form a government.

The alliance, dubbed the "war wing" by Kosovo's media and led by the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) of President Hashim Thaci, won 35.78 percent of votes, based on a count of nearly 70 percent of ballots.

Ramush Haradinaj, whom the leading coalition has nominated to be prime minister, hailed Kosovars "for the trust given to the coalition", adding "these are the best elections ever held" in Kosovo.

"The victory is convincing and makes us capable of operating further to create the country's government," he said.

READ MORE: Serbian election campaign leads to tension in Kosovo

But the nationalist left-wing Vetevendosje (Self-Determination) party appeared to roughly double its support since the last election, bagging 26.6 percent of votes after pledging to take on rampant corruption.

Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti hailed the result as a "huge victory" as he addressed his followers.

He said the party, which is known for its radical methods in opposition such as hurling tear gas in parliament, had "more victories ahead".

The coalition led by former ruling Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK, came in third with 25.3 percent of the vote.

READ MORE: Roma in Kosovo - The justice that never came

Supporters of the leading coalition and Vetevendosje took to the streets to celebrate in central Pristina.

The snap parliamentary election, which took place on Sunday, was called after 78 MPs out of 120 backed a vote of no confidence against the administration.

This is Kosovo's third legislative election since it declared independence from Serbia in 2008.

The opposition has been demanding elections for two years, primarily due to controversial agreements that the government signed in Brussels in 2015 regarding the border demarcation with Montenegro, and on establishing an autonomous association of Serb-majority municipalities.

Most of Kosovo's 1.8 million people are ethnic Albanian.

The country's Serb minority also automatically gets 10 representatives in the assembly, but the full distribution of seats would not be clear until Monday or later in the week.

The country, where half of the population is under the age of 30, has been beset with economic problems and political corruption.

The unemployment rate is 27.5 percent, and many young people leave Kosovo in search of a better life.

According to the Slovenia-based International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, Kosovo's political elites are "characterised by crime, corruption and nepotism".

Overshadowing the vote is a new special court set up to try war crimes allegedly committed by members of the pro-independence Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which fought Serbian forces in the late 1990s.

Turnout in Sunday's vote was 41.40 percent, a slight drop from last election's 2014 turnout which was 42.63 percent.
A coalition led by the Democratic Party of Kosovo wins the most votes in yesterday's election and is in a good position to form a government led by former rebel leader and Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj.