Justina Shiroka‑Pullja elected President of Kosovo

Parliament of Kosovo elected Justina Shiroka-Pullja as the country’s president in an assembly vote held late last night, concluding 13 minutes before the constitutional deadline and averting the prospect of snap elections.

Shiroka-Pullja secured victory in the first round with 81 votes in favour — the minimum number required at this stage. Her rival, university professor Eljiza Hodža, received one vote, while two ballots were declared invalid.

Background and parliamentary developments

The prime minister, Albin Kurti, nominated Shiroka-Pullja for the presidency; Bedri Hamza, leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), had earlier declared his support for her candidacy. Before electing the president, members of the Assembly approved amendments to the Law on the Specialized Chambers and the Special Prosecutor’s Office with 88 votes in favour.

After taking the oath, Shiroka-Pullja said: "This mandate does not belong to one person alone. It belongs to all citizens. I will be the president of all citizens. Kosovo must move forward as a democratic, secure state with a clear Euro‑Atlantic orientation and strong friendship with our allies. I believe in Kosovo and in its people. I believe that together we can build a better future for the generations to come."

Shiroka-Pullja is an economist and academic. In December 2025 she was elected president of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Kosovo (ASHAK), becoming the first woman to lead the institution, which was founded in 1975.

Born in 1953 in Pristina, she completed primary and secondary schooling there and graduated from the Faculty of Economics at the University of Pristina in 1976. She completed postgraduate studies in the theory and policy of economic development in 1984 in Zagreb and later earned a doctorate at the University of Pristina. Her early career included work at the People’s Bank of Kosovo and, from 1978, a teaching post at the Faculty of Economics in Pristina. Her biography also lists postdoctoral studies at the University of Linz, Austria, and the University of Arizona, USA.

Between 2008 and 2011 she served as minister of energy and mining as a member of the Democratic Party of Kosovo, and from 2011 to 2014 she was a PDK member of the Assembly. She has also been active in civil society on issues including women’s empowerment, gender equality, business development and entrepreneurship.

Photo: Printskrin