Supreme Court judge Rrustem Thaci has been elected the new head of the Kosovo Judicial Council. Thaci received a total of 6 votes, reports KosovaPress.

His opponent, Court of Appeals judge Besnik Bislimaj, received only 5 votes.

Rrustem Thaci’s mandate as head of the KJC is three years and begins today.

At today’s meeting of the KJC, the handover of duties also took place, with Deputy Chair of the Judicial Council Arjeta Sadiku formally transferring the role to Rrustem Thaci.

“Rrustem Thaci, a judge at the Supreme Court, has been elected as the head of the Kosovo Judicial Council. His mandate as head of the Council is three years and will begin on May 25. Thaci’s duties as a Supreme Court judge are suspended during his term as KJC chair,” he said.

In April of this year, the selection for the position of KJC chair failed because in the voting day both candidates received equal votes in both rounds, five to five, and one KJC member’s vote was declared invalid. This was the reason why a new competition was reopened.

The Judicial Council announced a new competition for the position of chair in March of this year, after Albert Zogaj’s mandate ended.