Week in Review: Elections and Struggles

Entrenched habits A Bosnian woman votes in elections in October 2014 in Sarajevo. Photo: EPA/FEHIM DEMIR As Bosnia and Herzegovina heads to the polls, promises of political renewal are colliding with entrenched habits that cut across party lines. The governing Trojka [Trio] has struggled to deliver the clean break from clientelism and politicised institutions it promised, potentially opening a path back to power for the unreformed main Bosniak party, the Party of Democratic Action, SDA – less through renewed enthusiasm for the party than from voter disappointment and apathy. Women’s participation in politics is another key issue. Although women account for more than 40 per cent of candidates as a result of legal obligations, they head just 15.5 per cent of the electoral lists, with parties often placing them low down, where their chances of winning are slim. Read more: Failings of Bosnia’s ‘Trojka’ Offer Unreformed SDA a Path Back (September 28, 2026) Bosnian Parties’ Election Gender Quotas Mask Failure to Empower Women (October 1, 2026) Fight that wasn’t A handout photo made available by the Serbian Presidency shows Aleksandar Vucic addressing supporters during a gathering ahead of his resignation in Belgrade, Serbia, 27 September 2026. EPA/DIMITRIJE GOLL/SERBIAN PRESIDENCY When mass protests put Serbia’s government under pressure following the Novi Sad railway station disaster, President Aleksandar Vucic promised a “fierce fight against corruption” backed by arrests. More than 18 months later, only a handful of such cases has reached trial, raising questions about what the campaign achieved. As Serbia heads towards elections, critics argue that the crackdown served more as political theatre than as a sustained attempt to tackle systemic graft, while experts warn that arrests alone are a poor measure of progress. Read more: In Serbia, ‘Fictitious’ Corruption Campaign Becomes Tool of Distraction (September 30, 2026) Justice questioned Supporters of former Kosovo Liberation Army leader Hashim Thaci take part in a march in his support in Pristina, 12 September 2026. EPA/GEORGI LICOVSKI The conviction of four former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA, including former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, has triggered protests and renewed criticism of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. Clint Williamson, the US prosecutor whose investigation helped pave the way for the court, told BIRN that Kosovo’s authorities failed to prepare the public for any outcome other than acquittal. Williamson stressed that the verdict concerns the individual responsibility of the four former KLA leaders, not the legitimacy of the KLA, or Kosovo’s liberation struggle. Beyond Kosovo, Williamson sees the Specialist Chambers as a potential model for international justice – at a time when geopolitical divisions make establishing new international tribunals increasingly difficult. Read more: US Prosecutor Questions Kosovo’s Failure to Mitigate Thaci Verdict Expectations (September 30, 2026) Opposition in fragments Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) newly elected Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas (C) receives the mayoral license as he attends a ceremony with his wife Nursen (R) in Ankara, April 2024. Photo: EPA/NECATI SAVAS Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas’s resignation from the Republican People’s Party, CHP, has worsened the fragmentation in an opposition party already divided by an internal leadership struggle and mounting legal pressure on municipalities it runs. By remaining independent rather than joining the breakaway New Party, Yavas has left open questions about the political future of one of the opposition’s most prominent figures. Some analysts believe he may retreat from politics altogether, while others argue that distancing himself from increasingly bitter party feuds could strengthen his eventual appeal, as an outsider. But for an opposition struggling ahead of future elections, his departure represents another blow – at a time when President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s rivals all seem increasingly divided. Read more: Mayor’s Resignation Deals Fresh Blow to Turkey’s Fragmented Opposition (September 29, 2026) Precious opportunity Moldovan President Maia Sandu (R) and European High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas (L) in Chisinau, Moldova, May 2026. Photo: EPA/DUMITRU DORU Moldova is counting on billions of euros in EU grants and concessional loans to help transform its economy and institutions as it moves towards membership, but Finance Minister Victoria Belous warns in an interview with BIRN that securing the money is only half the challenge. She says administrative delays and limited implementation capacity are already slowing investment, while EU disbursements depend on the country delivering agreed reforms. At the same time, planned tax changes and higher utility bills risk putting more pressure on households. For Belous, Moldova’s European transformation will ultimately depend on whether the state can turn available financing into functioning projects and sustainable reforms – without wasting a historic opportunity. Read more: Finance Minister: Moldova Mustn’t Waste EU Funds Intended for Reforms (September 28, 2026) Key voters Outgoing Bulgarian President Rumen Radev and his then Vice President Iliana Iotova during a formal handover ceremony in Sofia, January 2026. Photo: EPA/BORISLAV TROSHEV Bulgaria’s presidential election due on October 25 is rekindling longstanding divisions over the country’s geopolitical orientation, with acting President Iliana Iotova facing pro-EU challenger Andrey Gyurov alongside several Eurosceptic and Russia-friendly candidates. Iotova opposes military aid to Ukraine and advocates renewed dialogue with Moscow, positions that overlap with parts of the electorate supporting nationalist and pro-Russian candidates. Analysts say thwse overlapping constituencies could become important in a potential second round, if voters who initially back other candidates then coalesce around Iotova. Read more: Pro-Russian Voters May Hold Key in Bulgaria’s Presidential Election (October 1, 2026) A system exposed Albania’s now-dismissed State Intelligence Service chief, Vlora Hyseni. Photo: LSA. The arrest of Albania’s intelligence chief, Vlora Hyseni, on suspicion of leaking classified information has raised questions extending far beyond her individual responsibility. Security expert Arjan Dyrmishi told BIRN in an interview that the affair exposes failures in the mechanisms surrounding her appointment, in internal intelligence safeguards and parliamentary oversight – all potentially compromising Albania’s national security. Dyrmishi argued that determining what information may have been leaked, who was compromised and why existing safeguards failed will be crucial to understanding the damage done to Albania’s intelligence service and its reputation. Read more: Security Expert Questions Albania’s Readiness to Learn from Spy Chief’s Arrest (October 2, 2026)