The impact of party system in the creation of government in Kosovo

This paper will analyze the party system in Kosovo and its impact in the formation of the government. In order to have a comprehensive view of the political system in Kosovo, it is required to have an in depth study of political system, party system and electoral system applied in Kosovo since 1999, when the UNMIK Administration started to function, with particular emphasis on the parliamentary elections of June 2014 and 2017. Due to the socio-political circumstances in Kosovo and the post war circumstances, the transition and the process of building democratic institution was slow and conditioned, among other factors, by international administration. After the independence of Kosovo (2008), UNMIK legacy continued to have its impact also. The party system continues to be instable, both in the ideological sense and as a fundamental tool the formation of post-election governments. The proportional electoral system does not produce a majority. On the other hand, reserved seats (20) for minorities in Kosovo makes impossible to have a majority. Political parties are urged to do post electoral coalitions in order to establish a government. The paper concludes that Kosovo has an unstable party system. This comes for the following reasons: due to the electoral system; the lack of trust among political parties and the lack of ideological profiling of political parties. This reflects negatively on the country’s governance.