Kosovo is voting in local elections today to elect municipal mayors and municipal assembly deputies in all 38 municipalities. The poll is considered a crucial test of the readiness of Kosovo to get closer to the EU.

Chairwoman of the Central Elections Commission (CEC), Valdete Daka, in a media brief on Sunday morning said that all polling stations are open in Kosovo, announcing some technical irregularities in some of the municipalities. Kosovo is holding regular local elections after holding early parliamentary elections in June which changed the political landscape of Kosovo. As part of efforts to prevent irregularities the State Prosecution Office announced that they have taken all measures and engaged 100 of their prosecutors and supporting staff during the election day. Also the Kosovo Police took all necessary measures and is implementing an operational plan on the election day. On Saturday, the Kosovo president Hashim Thaci urged voters cast their ballots and show the country knows how to organise fair and democratic elections.

For municipal assembly elections, voting is done through an open list proportional representation system in which voters select a political party and a candidate. Parties are then allocated seats in proportion to their share of votes. Some 1.8 million people are taking to the polls.