Until midnight on Sunday, December 7, political entities have the deadline to submit the list of candidates with whom they will compete in the early elections for the Assembly of Kosovo.

However, after the application, the Central Election Commission (CEC), in cooperation with various state institutions, will verify the eligibility of candidates to be certified for participation in the December 28 elections.

CEC spokesperson Valmir Elezi told KosovaPress that, depending on the requirements of the law, the CEC will forward the lists of candidates for deputies to these institutions for the purpose of verification.

“In fulfilling its legal obligations regarding the eligibility and ability of candidates to be certified, the CEC, through the Office, will submit special requests to several institutions along with the list of candidates who want to be certified for participation in the elections, for the purpose of verifying whether they are in compliance with Article 30 of the Law on General Elections… To implement this article, the CEC sends official letters to several institutions to verify whether any of the candidates cannot be certified as a candidate for participation in the elections,” Elezi said.

Among many restrictions provided by law is also the limitation that a candidate cannot be a person who has been convicted in the last three years by a final court decision for a criminal offense, with one or more years of effective imprisonment. According to the CEC, this past of the candidates will also be verified.

“The Kosovo Judicial Council is one of the institutions from which the CEC will request verification of candidates. In Article 30 of the Law on General Elections, it is emphasized that a candidate cannot be a person if they have been convicted in the last three years by a final court decision for a criminal offense, with one or more years of effective imprisonment. Therefore, for the purpose of implementing this legal provision, we will request the KJC to verify the list of candidates to see if any of them do not comply with this legal restriction,” Elezi said.

According to Article 30 of the Law on General Elections, a person cannot be certified as a candidate for deputy who holds a special function under the current Law on Public Officials; is a member of the foreign service and diplomatic representation; is the chairperson or a member of the CEC and the Municipal Election Commission; is an official of PZAP; has been deprived of the right to be a candidate by a court decision, including a PZAP decision; has been convicted in the last three years by a final court decision for a criminal offense, with one or more years of effective imprisonment; has failed to pay a fine imposed by PZAP or the CEC; or has failed to comply with any PZAP order.