Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani announced that she has submitted constitutional amendments to the Assembly seeking to change the way the country’s president is elected, proposing that the head of state be chosen directly by the people through a popular vote.

In a public statement, Osmani said the move comes after repeated failures to elect a president through the parliamentary process.

“Considering the repeated failures in electing the President, I have just submitted to the Assembly the constitutional amendments for the direct election of the President, which were drafted by the Commission for Constitutional Amendments in 2011,” Osmani wrote.

The president called on all political parties to support the proposed constitutional changes.

“From now on, let the people speak,” Osmani added in a Facebook post.

Under Kosovo’s current Constitution, the president is elected by the Assembly through a secret vote of lawmakers.

Osmani’s call comes after political parties failed to reach an agreement on a consensus candidate for president and as she did not secure their support for a second mandate.

Tags: Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, president, constitutional amendments, voting.