Speaker of the Assembly of Kosovo

The office of the Speaker of the Assembly of Kosovo was formally established on 10 December 2001. Before this date, Kosovo did not have an elected legislative body, and all executive and legislative powers were held by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and its head, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG). The newly elected Assembly held its first constitutive session in Pristina on 10 December 2001. Because the Assembly did not yet have its own rules of procedure, SRSG Hans Hækkerup served as the temporary Speaker and Chairperson. He officially opened the session, verified the mandates of the 120 elected deputies, administered their oaths of office, and legally established the legislature. Only after these procedural steps did the deputies elect their first permanent President of the Assembly: Nexhat Daci of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK). Between 2001 and 2008, the President of the Assembly operated under the UNMIK Constitutional Framework. During this period, the position was important but its real powers were limited. The Assembly could only pass laws in specific administrative areas, while key sectors like security, justice, and foreign affairs remained under the direct control of the SRSG, who could also veto laws or dissolve the Assembly if necessary. However, the President of the Assembly did hold one major sovereign responsibility: serving as the acting President of Kosovo if the head of state died, resigned, or became incapacitated. This occurred in January 2006, when Nexhat Daci served as acting President following the death of Ibrahim Rugova. The role changed significantly on 17 February 2008, when the Assembly declared independence. With the adoption of the Constitution of Kosovo later that year, UNMIK's supreme authority ended. The Assembly became the highest, fully sovereign legislative body of the new republic, transforming the President of the Assembly from a partially ceremonial role under international administration into one of the central state institutions. ==Duties and responsibilities==

Today, the President of the Assembly is a key democratic figure in the Republic of Kosovo. According to the Constitution (Article 67) and the Assembly's Rules of Procedure, the President is responsible for leading the legislative branch, ensuring the democratic process, and representing the institution both domestically and internationally. The core duties and powers of the President of the Assembly include: • Representing the Assembly: Acting as the primary voice and official representative of the legislature in relations with other state institutions and foreign dignitaries. • Managing sessions: Convening and chairing the plenary sessions of the Assembly, maintaining parliamentary order, and presiding over the meetings of the Presidency of the Assembly. • Setting the agenda: Determining the legislative work program and proposing the agenda for parliamentary sessions, in coordination with the Assembly's Presidency. • Signing legislation: Formally signing all laws, resolutions, and decisions adopted by the deputies before they are forwarded to the President of Kosovo for official promulgation. • Presidential succession: Serving as the acting President of Kosovo for a period of up to six months in the event that the sitting President is temporarily unable to fulfill their duties, resigns, or is dismissed. Through these powers, the President of the Assembly plays a critical role in maintaining the separation of powers, ensuring transparent lawmaking, and guaranteeing institutional stability in the country. ==Officeholders==

Speaker Chairperson of the Constitutive Session Chairperson of the Constitutive Session of the Assembly of Kosovo (, ) is the temporary presiding officer of the inaugural (constitutive) session of a newly elected Assembly of Kosovo. The role is largely ceremonial and symbolic, representing both continuity (through the oldest member) and renewal (through the youngest member) in the democratic process. During the session the mandates of elected members are verified, oaths of office are taken, the temporary Presidency is formed, and the legislature is officially constituted. The chairperson and deputy serve only until the permanent Speaker (President) of the Assembly and deputy speakers are elected. The practice has evolved since the creation of the Assembly under UNMIK in 2001. The first elections for the Transitional Assembly were held on 17 November 2001 under UNMIK Regulation No. 2001/9 (Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government). The constitutive session on 10 December 2001 was initially chaired by the UNMIK Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Hans Hækkerup, acting as temporary chairman; the Assembly then elected its own permanent leadership (Nexhat Daci of the LDK became the first Speaker). In the second legislature (elections October 2004), the constitutive session of 3 December 2004 was chaired for the first time by the oldest elected member, academician Mark Krasniqi (aged 84), assisted by deputy Nekibe Kelmendi (LDK, aged 60). At that time the Rules of Procedure did not yet require the youngest member as deputy; the assistant was chosen pragmatically, often a senior or respected deputy from the same party. By the constitutive session of 4 January 2008 (still before Kosovo’s declaration of independence on 17 February 2008) the practice had changed. The oldest member, Mark Krasniqi, again chaired, but this time he was assisted by the youngest elected member, Njomza Emini (born 1983, aged 24). This “oldest + youngest” formula had become the accepted custom through amendments to the Rules of Procedure between 2005 and 2007 and has remained the standard ever since. After the declaration of independence and the adoption of the Constitution of Kosovo in 2008, the practice was formalized in the Rules of Procedure (versions of 2010 and 2022). The oldest member now chairs the inaugural session and is explicitly assisted by the youngest elected member. This tradition has been followed consistently since the 2008 legislature and symbolizes the transfer of power from one generation to the next. The role remains essential for ensuring constitutional and procedural legitimacy at the start of each legislative term, especially during periods of political deadlock when the election of the permanent Speaker can take weeks or months. Political parties: ==References==