Kosovo begins voting in snap general election

PRISTINA, KOSOVO - JUNE 11: Kosovo’s electorate heads to the polls on June 11, 2017 in a snap parliamentary contest after the government in Pristina collapsed last month in a sudden no-confidence vote. Nearly 2 million voters will select the new government from among 19 political parties, five pre-election alliances and two civil initiatives.Thousands of international observers will monitor voting. Kosovo has been at the heart of controversy in the Western Balkans, facing internal crises between ethnic Albanian and Serbian communities as well as disputes with Belgrade that does not recognize Pristina. A unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008 is recognized by more than 100 countries, including the U.S., Britain, France, Germany and Turkey, but tension between Belgrade and Pristina has risen to its highest level since the EU tried to normalize relations in 2011. The main focus of early election in 2017 is on Kosovo's former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj who was detained in France in January, accused of committing war crimes in June 1999 when he was the commander of Kosovo Liberation Army. Serbia demanded his extradition but French courts have rejected the demand. Haradinaj was later released on bail pending court proceedings. One of two major pre-election alliances in the election is the PDK coalition led by Haradinaj. The PDK, which includes important political parties such as the Kosovo Democratic Party (PDK), the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) and the Initiative for Kosovo (NISMA), is one of the electoral favorites. It was founded by Kosovo's current President Hashim Thaci.Haradinaj, under the slogan of a "new start", promises to improve the country’s health system, economy and production as well as attracting investors from the Kosovo diaspora and says he will abolish corruption while fighting crime and terror.Preliminary results are expected to start coming in around midnight (Footage by Erkin Keci/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)