Wrote: Fatbardh Dema
"Official: Sami Lushtaku will be made official as a candidate for President of Kosovo, if PDK wins", is claim published on TikTok on November 20 by the account "faktehistorikeshqip".
Ky claim is placed as a caption on a photograph showing the Democratic Party of Kosovo's candidate for prime minister in the February 9 elections, Bedri Hamza, and member of Governing Council of PDK, Sami Lushtaku, from the party's rally in Skenderaj, on November 15.
The truth?
The Democratic Party of Kosovo has not mentioned Lushtak's name as an option for a presidential candidate in Kosovo. Such a claim cannot be found in any article in any credible media outlet.
Even if you search in the online search engine "Google" with the keywords "Sami Lushtaku, candidate for president"No article with such content appears."
Hibrid.info has also verified the official accounts of Democratic Party of Kosovo, Bedri Hamza and Sami Lushtakut on Facebook. In none of them did he find the claim published on TikTok. Lushtaku, who is the deputy mayor of the Municipality of Skenderaj, announced the rally on Facebook, but November 15thHowever, there is no mention of a presidential candidacy issue there either.
He also posted Hamza, which did not mention any issues related to the TikTok claim. This post was also used in a press release from the PDK.
How is the president elected in Kosovo?
According to CONSTITUTION of Kosovo, the President of the Republic is elected by the Assembly by secret ballot. The election of the President must take place no later than 30 days before the end of the term of the current President. To be nominated as a candidate for President, the candidate must secure the signatures of at least 30 Members of Parliament. Members of the Assembly may only sign for one candidate for President of the Republic of Kosovo. The election of the President is made by two-thirds of the votes of all Members of the Assembly. If no candidate receives a two-thirds (2/3) majority in the first two ballots, a third ballot is organized between the two candidates who received the highest number of votes in the second ballot, and the candidate who receives the majority of the votes of all Members of Parliament is elected President of Kosovo.
The current president of Kosovo is Vjosa Osmani. She was elected president on April 4, 2021. The President's term of office is five years.
Analyze:
Through a TikTok post, the account "faktehistorikeshqip" has claimed that Democratic Party of Kosovo official Sami Lushtaku is the chosen name to be a candidate for president of Kosovo, if this party wins the parliamentary elections on February 9, 2025.
But no facts have been provided for this claim. Such a claim has not been found in any credible publication.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses this article as "Fake News".
Reasoning:
The “Fake News” rating is given to informational content that is entirely fabricated or that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be defined as having been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.